Ms Babysitter vs Mr Truck
by GlitchGirl23
Summary: Sarah has a job once more, Will has to keep going to horrible meetings to keep NEST operational. Decepticons still prowl about so Ironhide cannot be Annabelle's sole care taker, leaving only one option. A babysitter. Let's see what happens :3
1. Prologue

**J: Yay for being horrible and starting another fanfiction I won't ever finish (most likely.) But due to my current obsession it had to be done, SORRY! I already got a pic out for advertising this, a pic which I am quite proud of...okay, half proud of lol. The truck I drew which is suppose to be Ironhide sucks monkey wrenches! As well I would love some tips from all you hardcore Transformer fans on how I can improve my Ironhide and such as I go along :3**

**Disclaimer: We all know I do not own these awesome people, but I do wish that I could meet Micheal Bay one day and ask that he adopt me, since it's the closest thing I'll get to owning some kind of connection to these awesome people/ transformers.  
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Ms. Babysitter VS Mr. Truck**

Prologue

"I'm sorry, but I just can't! My psychiatrist says to avoid all and any contact with the cause of my paranoia, and that just happens to be your house entirely. Again, I'm sorry Mrs. Lennox." The phone line went dead, leaving Mrs. Lennox once more without a babysitter for their child.

Putting the phone back into it's cradle Sarah put her hands on her hips and called out," Will! We need to have a talk, NOW!"

William Lennox was down the stairs in a heart beat and in front of his very unhappy wife. "Something wrong sweetie?"

"Yes, something is very wrong. I just finished my phone call with Brittany and she just told me that due to psychiatric issues she can no longer babysit Annabelle. So tell me, are you going to talk to Ironhide, or am I going to have to?" The tone of her voice promised that the very large metal alien life form living in their garage would be left worse for ware if she went out there.

Hands up in surrender the military man beat a hasty retreat to the garage. The aforementioned alien life form was currently recharging in his alt mode after a tiring day of battle the day before. Standing right in front of the large black Top Kick pick up truck Will scratched the back of his head and asked awkwardly," Ironhide? You awake?"

"I was woken not but a moment ago by Sarah's demand."

"Yeeah. It turns out our babysitter quit...again. Something about psychiatric issues. You wouldn't happen to know anything about it would you?" Will raised an eyebrow at his long time guardian and friend.

There came a short silence that slowly made the Autobot Weapon's Specialist feel like a sparkling that had leaked lubricant where it should not have. Finally Ironhide let out a low grumble that sounded like," Not my fault the adolescent femme wasn't paying attention to the amount of animated programs Annabelle watched."

Will puckered his mouth in a scowl then huffed," Let me guess, as soon as she stopped paying attention to Annabelle you started flashing your headlights through the windows, calling her cell phone but saying nothing? No wonder she's going to a psychiatrist! I get that you're just trying to protect Annabelle, but Sarah needs to work and I have meetings to make sure we can keep working together in NEST. We would let you watch Annabelle but there's never a guarantee that an attack won't happen. You can't protect Annabelle and fight at the same time, and it's good for Annabelle to have an older female around that can act like an older sister for her. The next babysitter we hire needs to stay, so unless she doesn't get along with Annabelle I don't want you trying to spook her off, got it?"

A stream of warm air hissed out of Ironhide's grid plate, his voice gruff from annoyance Ironhide grumbled," Fine, I will not scare off the next femme you hire for Annabelle's care taker. But if any harm comes to Annabelle while under the femme's watch, you must replace her immediately. Is this acceptable?"

_'How did I go from warning to negotiating?'_ Will thought this before suggesting," To be more specific, if Annabelle is harmed due to the fem-babysitter's carelessness, she will be given a warning then one more chance. However if an accident happens, which is very likely to happen with children no matter how careful you are with them, then she is to remain. Is that acceptable?"

Another hiss of steam and a bit of silence until Ironhide reluctantly replied," I will accept these conditions. But only because they are the best thing I will get in comparison to what Sarah would offer." Will couldn't hold off a smirk on that statement. Ironhide had learned from day one that Sarah Lennox was a non-negotiator in concerns of her baby girl.

"Thank you, I'm going to go try and get Sarah to agree with these terms. She won't be happy, so you might want to keep clear for a while. Oh, and Annabelle wants another story about Cybertron before bed. Remember, no really intense details or Sarah will keep the window closed for a month." The request/warning made Will gave Ironhide a light tap on his hood and went back inside.

Once the door closed Ironhide growled outloud to himself," Even if she closes the window I can always talk to Annabelle through the glass." Only their neighbours that lived 15 minutes down the road from them would hear him as well.


	2. Meet Your Opponent

**J: YAY for the first update of the year! And lucky for you people who are following this! The response I got was very encouraging, though I know this chapter won't get as good as a response, I'm not really happy with this chapter just cause it's one of those transitional ones you need here and there. But let me know people! **

**Is my OC too Mary Sue?**

**Does Annabelle sound too old?**

**FEED BACK PEOPLE! It's the only thing that will make this better!**

**Thanks to: GreenpplOMG, ultimateanime12, supergirlprime **(the reason as to why Ironhide alone doesn't babysit Annabelle is stated in the prologue when Will is talking to him in the garage.) **And a big thank you to Tenshi of Light21 **(Hope you got those login issues fixed.)

**DISCLAIMER: Don't want to but have to say I do not own the bots that are mentioned, Roxie is mine though!**

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Chapter One – Meet Your Opponent**

"Okay, I called the agency and they'll be sending over the babysitter in two hours. Annabelle I want you to join me when I meet her so you can tell me what you think about her after...Ironhide you may LISTEN in on the conversation but nothing more." Sarah had walked out back to sit in the swing next to her daughter, an observant blonde haired, blue eyed five year old.

Ironhide in his bi-pedal mode was sitting a good distance across from the mother and child polishing his guns. He retracted his guns and paid closer attention when Annabelle asked," But what if she's really mean looking like Mrs. Jameson?" Sarah had to really fight back a smile when not only Annabelle, but Ironhide as well, shuddered at the thought of Annabelle's first babysitter.

Putting an arm around Annabelle's shoulders Sarah asked," What if she is really scary looking but was really nice? I would hurt her feelings if I fired her just for her appearances." Annabelle nodded, her mother was right. Her best friend was a giant robot that most people are afraid of when they see him for the first time (according to Daddy) when really Ironhide was really nice.

"Scary looking or not this care taker better not be covered in metal like the last one. It took everything I had to not call Ratchet to use his magnet on her." Ironhide said all this with a visible scowl on his face. The first night after seeing her he had complained to Will and Sarah about how humans should not attempt to be Autobots or Decepticons. They had reassured him that most teenagers did such a thing because it made them feel cool. Ironhide was still repulsed by it and constantly told Annabelle she wasn't allowed to copy her.

Sarah made a face of disapproval to his thoughts and Annabelle laughed at the image of Brittany being stuck to Ratchet's magnet hand. The phone rang and Sarah ran to go get it. Once she was inside the house Ironhide moved a little closer to Annabelle, his voice quiet he asked," Did you like that last care taker?" Ironhide felt he needed to ask since he scared one away before that Annabelle had really liked, she'd been so upset she didn't talk to Ironhide for two days. (During one he'd gone on a NEST mission to destroy a Decepticon, and had taken his misery out on the poor bot. There wasn't much left when he'd finished with it.)

Annabelle gave her big brother bot a smile of reassurance," Don't worry Ironhide, she was okay but she didn't play with me a lot, and she had a funny smell." Ironhide let out the breathe he'd unintentionally been holding.

"Annabelle! Ironhide! Change in plans! That was the babysitter. She's on her way right now, she has another appointment later and couldn't get any time to reschedule. I want you to go and clean up your toys in the living room, and Ironhide...Don't send any part of your body into the house, you scared the crap out of the third babysitter with that stunt, remember?" Sarah came out of the house at a quick pace and removed her daughter from the swing to put her on her feet after a quick brush off of any sand that had gotten on her clothes.

"Hmph. She hasn't even started and she's already getting under my gears. You shouldn't accommodate to her will Sarah." Ironhide grumbled this through his grate since he'd changed back to his alt mode. Sarah rolled her eyes at the frumpy Autobot and went back in to do some minor cleaning.

When he was sure he was alone Ironhide tapped into the motion sensors he'd planted around the farm's perimeter, it also would inform him if the care taker arrived in a Decepticon or an Autobot that had yet to be discovered.

Three minutes later the sound of a motorcycle engine could be heard in the distance, as he had wanted Ironhide got a thermal outline of the femme care taker. The care taker was roughly five feet four inches, her body shape was neither obese nor slim, a healthy in between weight. It had disturbed Ironhide that the past few care takers were either far past their weight limit or so underweight that they could have been made of wood! From the thermal outline of her motorcycle Ironhide guessed the care taker was riding a GS 500F Suzuki, and according to the internet that make and model were quite expensive. The last care taker that was well off enough to afford expensive items gave barely any attention to Annabelle whatsoever and even spent most of her time talking on her cellular phone. That particular care taker lasted only one night before he harrassed her to no ends.

The motorcycle came to a gentle stop in front of the enlarged garage. Ironhide inched up to the side of the house in order to get a look at the new care taker. She pulled off her helmet to reveal she had short cropped red dyed hair, dark hazel brown eyes and fairly pale skin. The femme care taker tucked her helmet under her arm and spun around in a full 180 to take in the surroundings. A small smile on her face the care taker went for the front door. Rolling forward just a smidge more to the cracked open living room window Ironhide listened in on the conversation.

"Hello, you must be Roxanne Glitch. I'm Sarah Lennox and this little cutie is Annabelle." The name given Ironhide hopped onto the internet to look up any criminal records or any proof that the person in the living room wasn't actually human. (After the Pretender incident at Sam's college the Autobots had been more thorough on the humans that interacted with their human companions.)

In the living room Roxanne Glitch, clad in well worn green converse, jeans that showed her left knee, a black leather jacket, and a simple dog collar shook Sarah's hand. Once the contact was broken she responded," It's nice to meet both of you, and it's okay to call me Roxie or Glitch, most of my employers and friends do."

"Can I call you Glitch too?" Being a curious and eager to please child Annabelle asked this out loud.

Smiling wider and crouching down to eye level with the adorable blonde haired and blue eyed girl Roxanne offered her for the five year old to grasp for another hand shake. When the little girl returned the hand shake Roxie said," I would love it if you called me Glitch. What would you prefer to be called Annabelle?"

Annabelle gave the older girl a big smile, non of the other babysitters had even asked her what she liked to be called. For some reason all of her babysitters called her Annie, and she hated that short version of her name," Just Annabelle please."

"Then I promise to call you Annabelle." The two girls gave a final shake and Roxie got to her feet. Mrs. Lennox had merely watched in contentment as the older girl talked to her child as if they were the same age. Mrs. Lennox hadn't been too pleased when Brittany talked to Annabelle like a new born.

Having Roxie's attention back Mrs. Lennox gestured to the couch and recliner so they could talk while comfortably seated. Use to the parent interrogation Roxie deliberately took the chair so both mother and daughter could see her face to judge her expressions when answering a question. Sitting with Annabelle tucked up next to her Sarah asked the very first question every parent asked her," So how old are you Roxie?"

"Believe it or not, I'm 19." As always the expression the parent made was of pure disbelief. Roxie's height and rounded face often gave the appearance that she was at least 13.

Shaking off her shock Sarah laughed," I believe you, especially since your motorcycle counts as evidence. What's your policy for discipline if Annabelle misbehaves?"

" I don't have my own method of discipline, I think it's better to use the parent's method." Roxie's answer was unexpected, all the previous babysitters always used the time out method. But Annabelle was a well behaved child and only had accidents happen. The answer did please Sarah though.

Feeling much more relaxed with the young woman Sarah asked a more personal question that she would usually leave until the end," Why are you a baby sitter Roxie?"

Roxie blinked a couple times and leaned back in the chair. She'd never really thought about this question before. It took her a moment until she replied," To be honest with you Mrs. Lennox I do it because I feel like it's something I should do. When I first started to babysit it felt right, like I should have been watching... no more like, protecting others from the beginning." When Roxie finished talking and looked at Mrs. Lennox she found the blonde haired woman staring at her in awe.

Feeling embarrassed Roxie scratched the back of her head and mumbled," Sorry, that was a really weird answer right?"

Both of the older females were taken back when Annabelle said," It makes sense to me Mommy. I like Glitch, can she be my baby sitter Mommy?"

Before Sarah could reply two things happened at once. First Will returned from his daily job and there came a loud engine rev from outside the window. Sarah rubbed her temples and turned to her husband saying," I'll be right back, I'm going to go check on Ir-on the truck. It sounds like it's got faulty wiring again. Will this is Roxie, the new baby sitter. Roxie this is my husband Will." The three people watched Sarah quickly leave the house, and also leave the room occupants in an awkward silence.

Will cleared his throat and stepped forward with an offered hand, he never did handle these kind of interactions well but a thought came to mind that might break the tension," Hi Roxie, you wouldn't happen to own that beautiful motorcycle outside would you?"

"I do indeed sir. She's my pride and joy in life." Roxie let out an inner sigh of relief. She hated awkward situations and was very grateful they could talk about something while they waited for Sarah to come back.

**In the Garage -**

"There can't possibly be something wrong with that girl Ironhide. She is perfectly nice, honest and Annabelle is already likes her. What have you got to complain about?" Sarah started her rant the second she opened the door going into the garage.

Given a chance to speak Ironhide immediately informed her," I did not find a criminal record, or anything else to indicate this Roxanne Glitch to be a delinquent. However in my search I came across an out of date information article known as a newspaper article. I have sent it to your computer, but she will explain it herself. Ask her about her ears." Ironhide kept his voice in a low whisper so as not to be heard outside of the garage. Sarah blinked at the disguised Autobot in confusion for a moment then gave up trying to figure out the alien's reasoning and left to do as she was kinda asked.

Sarah walked into the living room to find her husband, her daughter, and the babysitter sitting on the couch playing a racing game on the X-Box 360. Smiling at how well they were getting along Sarah walked over to the side of the couch to get the gamers' attention. The game was paused and all eyes were on the mother. Walking further in Sarah told them," The truck problem is fixed, and it seems that there should be no problem with Roxie being Annabelle's new baby sitter. But, before I give you all the job details and dates, I was wondering if-"

"If I could explain the things on my ears since they don't look like regular hearing aid?" Roxie had caught on to what Mrs. Lennox was trying to politely ask about and decided to save the poor woman the trouble. Though she thought for sure her hair had hid her ears fairly well from unobservant sight.

Sarah gave a nod and watched in fascination as Roxie tucked her hair behind her ears to reveal them to be completely covered by sleek silver headphone covers. Will's eyebrows rose up two notches and Annabelle had admiration of the devices written all over her face. Looking directly at Sarah since she had been the one to bring it to attention Roxie explained," I was born with what the doctors call, extremely acute hearing. My sense of hearing is three times more sensitive than the average human's. I was such a wonder when I was born that I was actually named the human satellite! These things on my ears are actually hearing mufflers, without them I'd be going insane from the weird high pitch frequencies I can hear from anything electronic."

Will and Sarah exchanged a quick glance between each other at the mention of anything electronic. "Have there ever been circumstances when you needed to take your hearing mufflers off?" Will asked this with his fingers crossed behind his back. The last thing the government needed was their largest secret blown by a babysitter with super hearing.

"The batteries usually run out after two months, other than that I just take them off when I bathe." Roxie wasn't sure but she could have sworn both parents looked very relieved at her answer.

A relaxed smile on her face Sarah took a step to the side to allow access to the kitchen while saying," I'll take your word for it Roxie. Now if you would please follow me we can discuss the dates, rules, and pay." Smiling herself Roxie walked to the kitchen with Mrs. Lennox, eager to be declared the official babysitter.

Will waited until they were in discussion before crouching down to eye level with Annabelle," Okay Sweetie, what are the rules for when we're not home and you have a babysitter."

"Rule One: Don't talk to Ironhide. Rule Two: Don't talk about Ironhide and/or his friends. Rule Three: If a Decepticon shows up make the babysitter go to the safety shelter." Annabelle recited all this from memory in a very bored tone. She knew she Daddy only asked her to make sure she knew it was very important.

Will gave his baby girl a kiss on the head as a reward and got to his feet. Going into the kitchen he walked in just as Sarah asked," Okay, and the final order of business. How much do you take for pay?" Will learned from the last few babysitters that negotiation was needed, otherwise they could rob you blind for just a week's worth of work.

"Since I'm watching Annabelle three times a week for only six hours I'd be happy with accepting 2.00 per hour. As far as the weekend jobs I'll accept 50 if for both days. Is that okay?" Roxie had once again left the Lennox parents bewildered. Brittany had asked for ten dollars per hour, and they never bothered hiring her for the weekends since she asked for 100 for the whole weekend. The babysitters before Brittany asked for a little more or a little less than that.

Shaking her head Sarah insisted," That's far too little for the work you'll be doing Roxie. How about 5.00 per hour?"

"Thank you for the offer, but the total amount you'd be paying me is far too much to be taking from you, even if you both have the money to it. If you weren't nice people I might have charged minimum wage at least. Plus your daughter looks like she'll be very little trouble. However if you insist on I will accept 2.50 per hour. Which will add up to 45.00 per week." Roxie's negotiating gave Will and Sarah the impression that she had a lot of experience with these situations.

Giving Sarah held out her hand to make the final handshake of agreement, when Roxie took it Sarah sighed," 45.00 per week it is then. When can you start?"


	3. Beware of the Star Screams

**J: Like most of the fanfictions I have going this one is not an exception to my really really bad update habits. At least I got this massive thing typed up, instead of my oh so important massive project for film crit 2...ANYWAYS! Again, I need feed back, are the characters in character? Should Annabelle's speech be a little less perfectly pronounced? **

**THANKS TO: ultimateanime12 **(the ways are endless, some he got from the twins playing pranks on the NEST soliders xD) **supergirlprime **(I am glad to hear you like it :3 And there is indeed more to Glitch than meets the eye, and it can be such a horrible pun sometimes lol.) **Latine Shewolf **(Thank you, I will take your word for it, but I'm still skeptical on Annabelle's speech but if the readers are cool with it it shall remain the same.) **Lightwolfheart **(We have already discussed Territory :P And thank you, I try xD)

**Disclaimer: I unfortunately am like most other fans and do not own the people and mechs named from Transformers, but I am proud to own Roxanne Glitch.**

**P.S. This is taking place roughly a year or so after the Fallen incident.**

**P.S.S. For those that are interested I'm putting the link to my title page for this fanfic on my profile.  
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Chapter Two – Beware The Star Screams**

Roxie left not long after with the promise of seeing them in two days for her first day of work. Once the GS 500F Suzuki was only a dot on the road Ironhide pulled out of his garage and went back to the backyard. Will and Sarah were already there sitting on the back porch while Annabelle played on her swings. When Ironhide rolled around the corner Sarah asked the old war veteran," What did you think of her Ironhide? I know you heard the whole conversation so you can't claim you didn't hear enough to make a verdict."

Ironhide switched to his bi-pedal mode to show he had his arms crossed. A scowl on his face Ironhide replied," I do no think it is safe for this Roxanne Glitch to be Annabelle's care taker. Her hearing puts my identity into jeopardy of being revealed."

"We know, bu she's the best babysitter we've ever come across. And Annabelle is already set on having her baby sit." Will had run his hand through his hair while saying this, as much as he liked the girl he couldn't risk a civilian learning of the Autobots.

Ironhide vented some air as a kind of sigh and told the parents," Very well, but I must inform Optimus of this development. Ratchet might also find this human interesting." Ironhide didn't wait for Will or Sarah's response and walked over to an open area where he usually sat to think or watch Annabelle.

Seated as comfortable as possible Ironhide began his communications.

_**'Ironhide to Optimus.'**_

_**'Optimus here Ironhide. Anything wrong?'**_

_**'Nothing wrong yet Optimus. But an unusual development has occurred and your advise would be appreciated.'**_

_**'What is this unusual development?' **_Ironhide could feel Optimus' curiosity through his words, meaning he understood it was not a matter of danger.

_**'Today Will and Sarah hired a new care taker for Annabelle, this human femme is different.' **_Ironhide sent the files he'd found on Roxanne Glitch.

_**'This is an unusual occurrence. Send the files to Ratchet to get his thoughts. I suggest you allow the femme to keep her position as care taker but to keep caution around her so as not to be discovered.'**_

_**'Very well Optimus. Ironhide out.' **_Ironhide waited a second before opening the communications line between him and Ratchet.

_**'Ironhide to Ratchet.'**_

_**'Ratchet here. I've heard from Optimus. Send me the file, I wish to see about this myself.' **_Ironhide rolled his optics at the medic's eagerness to learn more about the human function and system but still sent the newspaper clip.

_**'This is very interesting. I've accessed her recent health files, and it appears this acute hearing of her has barely degraded over the years.'**_

_**'You do know I don't give a frag about your medical fascination with the femme? All I want is your opinion on whether it is safe to keep her around Ratchet.'**_

_**'Hmph. Fine, I suggest you stay in your small shelter called a garage, her hearing has distance limits and cannot hear through walls. I will continue searching through her records, if I come across anything else you should be aware of I will let you know. Ratchet out.'**_

Grumbling about Dr. Hatchet and his medical jumbo nonsense Ironhide went back to Will and Sarah, Annabelle was with them now eating cut up apple slices. All three humans focused on the alien robot. Will was the one to ask," So what's the Big Bot's orders?"

"Optimus believes that there shall be no issue with the new care taker and that I should remain on watch for any indications she is aware of my existence." Ironhide saw the smile on Sarah's face expand with each word, when he finished Will also had a smile on his face. Though not as wide and sparkling as Annabelle's.

She swallowed her last apple slice and ran up to Ironhide's foot to give her big brother/best friend a hug. As she did Annabelle told Ironhide," Don't worry Ironhide, I promise to keep your secret a secret the best I can."

Ironhide smiled back despite the dislike Ironhide was feeling towards the thought of Roxanne Glitch being the new care taker.

**-Two Days Later-**

"There she is Mommy! I can see Glitch coming!" Annabelle was in the front yard that afternoon blowing bubbles while she waited for her baby sitter to show up. It was just getting to be 2:30 when she came into view. There came a low grumble from the garage as the large metal door started to shut.

Sarah shook her head at the childish behaviour of hiding in his room and joined Annabelle on the front sidewalk to wait for Roxie to park on the lawn.

Will had left earlier that morning for his drill training so it was just the ladies and Ironhide to greet Roxie. Roxie made a show of her bike skills by doing a little side skid stop right before the lawn so as not to damage the grass. Annabelle clapped her hands and Sarah had to refrain from scolding Roxie for doing something so dangerous. She pulled her helmet off and gave Annabelle and Sarah a big smile, hopping off to roll her bike more towards the garage she called out," Sorry if I'm late, traffic was crazy. Love your shirt Annabelle." Her bike parked with the keys safely tucked into her pocket Roxie had approached Sarah and Annabelle. Annabelle beamed in pride at the compliment to her shirt which she had decorated herself a year ago. It was a plain white T-shirt with a stencilled Autobot symbol over the heart and a big black truck painted on the majority of the shirt.

Walking back towards the house Sarah told Roxie," Don't worry, you're right on time. I'll show you where all the dishes and food are then I'll be on my way. Oh, and if it starts to rain you're welcome to put your motorcycle in the garage. Just be careful around the truck...It's really sensitive...The alarm will go off very easy."

"OK, thanks I'll be careful if I go in there. Is Annabelle allergic to anything?" With that Sarah and Roxie went through the basic child knowledge and care taking questions until Roxie felt confident enough to handle anything that Annabelle asked for food and entertainment wise.

Roxie and Annabelle waved Sarah off until she was down the road. It only dawned on Roxie then that both Will and Sarah were gone, but the truck was still there. She shrugged it off thinking that Will must have car pooled with his military buddies to his meeting. Going into the living room Roxie asked her new charge," Right, what shall we do today Annabelle?"

Annabelle turned in a circle to look and think about all her options. When she faced Roxie again she asked," Can we paint? Sam gave me new paints for my birthday."

"Sounds like an excellent idea, you go get your paints and I will make a painting area." Roxie watched in amusement as the girl took off at top speed to her bedroom to get the paints. Getting to work Roxie pushed the living room coffee table to the side, she then placed newspapers on the floor as well as a few pieces of printer paper. Grabbing two plastic cups she filled with water Roxie was startled to find Annabelle already at work using her finger paints. Roxie watched for a second and could start to see a truck from Annabelle's finger smudges of paint. _'Kid's got potential.'_

Sitting down to offer the water filled cups Roxie dipped her finger into the black paint and made a little squeal noise that made Annabelle laugh. Starting to draw a big sun in the corner of her blank page Roxie told Annabelle," I haven't finger painted in a long time. I forgot that paint is cold and gooey feeling."

"I like it. My teacher Mrs. Grobby lets us use our toes." Annabelle giggled when she saw the fake sickly face Roxie made.

As they painted the girls talked to get to know each other. After almost an hour Roxie knew that Annabelle liked the colours black and pink, her favourite animal was a cat, and that she loved her Daddy's big black truck. And Annabelle learned that Roxie lived by herself, had a boyfriend named Joey, and also liked the colours black and pink. What neither girl knew was that Ironhide had listened to their whole conversation by hiding by the open window. So far Ironhide had nothing to complain about except for the boyfriend. The last care taker that had a boyfriend brought him over to the house a few times, and each time Annabelle had been neglected enough to bother Ironhide into scaring the couple to the point where they never wanted to see another black truck in their lives.

The finger paints and newspapers put away Roxie sent Annabelle to the bathroom so she could put the pictures somewhere to dry safely. Annabelle had painted three very beautiful pictures, in each one there was a big black truck. _'She wasn't kidding when she said she loves her Dad's truck.' _Roxie put Annabelle's pictures on top of a book shelf holding all of Annabelle's books. Her own three pictures were each different. In one she had painted Annabelle having a picnic under the stars, another showed herself riding her motorcycle through the country as the sun, and in the last one she painted (with much difficulty) herself and Annabelle curled up under a blanket in the bed of the truck that Annabelle loved. She put her pictures on the windowsill right in the bright sunlight.

Roxie turned around to head to the bathroom to wash her own dirty digits only to stop at the sound of an engine. Spinning around she saw only the empty window. Shaking it off she turned around and started for the bathroom again. She stopped and spun around. Glaring at the empty window Roxie grumbled out loud to herself ," Stupid mufflers must be picking up a radio signal again." She turned her back to the window and waited for the sound of the engine. Hearing nothing Roxie quickly left the living room to the bathroom.

Ironhide, sitting an inch out of sight to the side of the window let out some steam. He'd just wanted to see the pictures and had moved towards the window as quietly as he could, but no! The femme had to be able to hear his engine and cause him to reverse rapidly twice! His sensors told him that she was in the bathroom washing her hands. Being quick and silent Ironhide rolled forward to the window. Scanning the pictures he stores them to his memory and wheeled back to the garage. Bringing the pictures up in his mind Ironhide looked for clues about the femme's identity in her art. The first one he liked simply for the fact that Annabelle was the main subject, though the absence of the moon in the sky bothered him. A sky without a moon was simply not bright enough. The second picture at first glance would be considered an imitation of multiple other scenes such as this. Someone with superior intelligence such as himself looked closer at the picture. The person that was suppose to be Roxanne was not wearing a helmet, meaning she had not had the time to put it on, implying she had to rush for some reason. There was also no smile on her face, only her eyes, which were not normal dots but narrowed slits. What that meant Ironhide didn't bother to figure out. The third picture he at first found a tad bothersome. Annabelle was welcome to sleep with him in such a manner, Roxanne was most definitely not. Ignoring that they were sleeping in his trunk he paid more attention to their faces. Both girls looks perfectly content to be sleeping on metal with only a blanket for warmth. The picture didn't indicate the time of day so he couldn't judge on whether they should be sleeping at all. Unable to tell anything from the picture Ironhide made his final decision. Roxanne really liked Annabelle, but was keeping her in the dark about something, she was paranoid and had no problem with sleeping in other people's vehicles. Liking Annabelle and the paranoia he was fine with, the secret and sleeping preferences not so much.

Deleting the second and third picture from his memory storage Ironhide decided he needed more information than this.

_**'Ironhide to Chromia.'**_

_**'Something wrong with the new care taker already Ironhide?' **_Ironhide ignored the hope that Chromia's transmission carried, he knew all the bots placed bets on the time it took for him to chase away Annabelle's care takers. Depending on the odds he sometimes deliberately waited so certain bots lost.

_**'Unfortunately for you, no. However I was hoping for a favour.' **_Ironhide rarely asked for favours, and when he did it was only from three bots. Ratchet (rarely), Optimus and Chromia.

_**'I'm not chasing off the care taker for you 'Hide. Ask one of the twins, Primus knows they needs something to do.'**_

_**'No. That's not what I wanted to ask. I want you or one of your sisters to replace the care taker's vehicle and see if you can learn anything about her.'**_

_**'That's a large favour to ask 'Hide. That kind of favour also needs Optimus' approval.'**_ All humour was gone when Chromia realized this was a serious favour.

_**'Fine, I will contact Optimus. If he approves will you do it?'**_

_**'Sure, I'm curious to see what kind of human femme can get under your gears so much.' **_Chromia and most of the Autobots had grown to completely adore little Annabelle and would do anything to help Ironhide watch over her.

_**'Thank you Chromia. I'll owe you one.' **_Ironhide did his best to keep the affection he felt for the femme out of the transmission, but he didn't do it very well.

_**'I wouldn't mind going on what the humans call a date. Yes, one date and we're even. Chromia out.' **_When the line went dead Ironhide searched for the definition of a date, what he found made his spark pulse a little faster and sent his fans revving to keep his body cool. He made sure to be calm before opening communications with Optimus.

_**'Ironhide to Optimus.'**_

_**'Optimus here. What can I do for you Ironhide?'**_

_**'I wish to send Chromia with the care taker for a day to gather intel on her.'**_

_**'Under what reasons do you wish for this intel Ironhide?'**_

_**'My reasons are in the best interests of Annabelle Optimus. Nothing more than that.'**_

_**'...Request granted, only for one Earth cycle. I will dispatch Chromia now. Optimus out.' **_When the line went dead Ironhide vented out more steam. He had not expected Optimus to agree so willingly. This femme must interest him as well. Going into a light stasis mode from all the tension Ironhide could only think about Chromia in bright shades of green.

Roughly an hour later Ironhide detected Chromia's signal. _**'Ironhide to Chromia. Keep your engine level as quiet as physically possible, this femme has intricate hearing that can even hear my engine at the lowest power setting.'**_

_**'Even Annabelle could hear you with your engine on the lowest setting. Remember all those fun games of 'Hide and Seek' last year?' **_Chromia was jestful but she still took Ironhide's advice and made the rest of her approach as quiet as her alt mode allowed.

Ironhide kept watch of the girls inside the house to ensure that the care taker didn't come outside just as Chromia arrived. Thankfully the coast remained clear even after Chromia showed up. Acting quick she scanned the Suzuki bike, complained about the colour, the hid the original out of immediate sight. In her new alt mode parked in the location of the real Suzuki bike she was imitating Chromia asked,_**' What will you do about her bike after I leave? This is only for one Earth cycle Ironhide.'**_

_** 'I'll transport the original to your location tonight once the care taker is in recharge.' **_The wonderful thing with being living metal organisms is the ability to communicate without actually talking out loud. Both bots would have been irritable without their direct comm. lines.

The door abruptly opened revealing Annabelle with some kind of head gear and goggles on her head. A large smile on her face she pulled Roxie outside by the hand while saying," Come on Glitch! You can't fly when you're inside!"

"You promise your parents and friends aren't outside waiting to take pictures?" Roxie sounded hesitant and playfully suspicious.

Pulling on the older girl's hand harder to get her outside Annabelle laughed," Yes! Mommy and Daddy are working, and all my friends are home or on vacation for summer. You pinky promised to go flying with me!"

"Okay, okay. I never break my pinky promises. But I'm praying to all the deities of this planet that your parents don't get home from work early. If my motorcycle could laugh it would." With that said Roxie finally stepped outside, dressed in her regular clothes, only with an additional fairy dress and wings over top.

_**'Oh sweet Primus Ironhide! You are missing quite the entertainment.' **_To prove her words Chromia took a picture and sent it to Ironhide, and Optimus, and Ratchet. The resounding laughter she got back from two of the male bots made it that much harder for her not to laugh out loud herself.

_**'I am most certainly showing this to Will and Sarah. Keep them in your sights for as long as you can Chromia, the best I can get are thermal outlines through this blasted garage.' **_Ironhide said this after he had calmed down and focused his attention solely on the surrounding area for any potential threats.

A chill going down her spine Roxie looked back over her shoulder at Chromia, raising an eyebrow at how much shinier the paint seemed. A tug on her hand made her look back to her current objective and continued onwards to the more open area in the front yard. Making sure they were a good distance back from the road Roxie crouched down saying," Alright Captain Annabelle of the Elite Fairie Force, it's time to mount up and set out." Annabelle gave a salute then all too happily jumped onto Roxie's back, successfully without ruining the fairy wings.

Straightening up with a firm grip on Annabelle's legs Roxie changed her voice so she sounded as if she was on a radio," This is your fairy plane speaking. In order to steer please use the silver covered handles on either side of my head, caution is advised to avoid silver cover removal. Enjoy your flight Captain Annabelle."

Giggling at how silly her babysitter was Annabelle carefully put her hands around Roxie's ears. Her grip firm but gentle Annabelle gave a little tug on Roxie's left ear to start the game. Walking at a steady pace Roxie spoke again," I forgot to mention the speed settings. There is snail, horse trot, and cheetah. In case of emergencies there is also lightning cheetah on a bullet train. And this fairy plane would appreciate being told everything Captain Annabelle sees through her flight goggles, this poor fairy plane is blind as a bat."

"Okay. Um, there's a giant butterfly doing ballet to the left, but that's it. Fairy Plane please go to horse trot speed. We need to finish our adventure before supper time." Annabelle had looked around and found only the butterfly to tell her magical Fairy Plane about.

"Speed increase acknowledged. It is recommended that Captain Annabelle wrap her legs around the Fairy Plane to be a seat belt." Captain Annabelle wrapped her legs around Roxie's waist as asked and squeaked in surprised joy when Roxie began to jog to the backyard.

"Wheee! Oh! I see a bouncing blue bear on the right! And there's a pink pony! Hi Pinkie!" For a quick second Captain Annabelle let go of Roxie's left ear to wave at the invisible pink pony. Captain Annabelle wasn't quick enough and found her magic Fairy Plane abruptly turning to the right towards one of the Lennox apple trees. Right before they hit the tree Captain Annabelle gave a tug on Roxie's left ear, making the older girl turn just in time so that they were heading towards the flower patch instead.

"Hold on Captain Annabelle, we're going through some r-r-rough s-s-sky!" To add affect Roxie deliberately jiggled up and down, making Captain Annabelle giggle and laugh.

"STOP! STOP!" Captain Annabelle's sudden cries caused Roxie to freeze in place, worried that she had upset Annabelle somehow.

When a second passed with no word from her rider Roxie asked," You okay Annabelle?"

"SHH! We flew into a swarm of sleeping Star Screams." Annabelle's answer made Roxie relax once more and go back into her character.

In a quiet whisper Roxie asked," What's a Star Scream Captain Annabelle?"

"Really, really, REEEALLY big robot guys with red eyes that turns into an army plane when they sleep. Go back slowly Fairy Plane, and we might live." Roxie nodded her head so as not to make more noise and began walking backwards from the way they'd come.

"Uh oooh."

"The Star Screams just woke up didn't they?"

"Uh huh...FLY FAIRY PLANE! FLY!" Captain Annabelle yelled at the top of her lungs and pulled hard on Roxie's right ear to make the girl-fairy-plane spin around and take off at a run.

Going towards the house to get to the front door Roxie panted," Will we make it in cheetah speed Captain?"

"No! It's an emergency! We need lightning cheetah on a bullet train! Quick! Before they use their laser cannons!"

"You didn't say anything about laser cannons before Captain! Hold on to your goggles!" Tightening her hold on the little girl's legs Roxie ran as fast as she possibly could.

They turned around the house, up the two steps and into the house where Roxie fell down on her knees to let Annabelle off and to catch her breathe. Annabelle went to the door and locked it, sitting down next to Roxie she grinned saying," Good job Fairy Plane. We got away and we didn't get shot."

"Thank goodness. Phew, I'm pooped! I need to start building up my stamina if I'm going to play Captain Annabelle and The Magical Fairy Plane more often." Dramatically rolling onto her back Roxie took in slow deep breathes.

Back outside Chromia considered it safe to start communicating with Ironhide again, _**'Do you play with Annabelle like that 'Hide?'**_

_** 'I am not and never will be a magical fairy plane.' **_ The implication Ironhide assumed Chromia was making made Ironhide's energon boil.

_**'Okay Mr. Cranky Cannons. I meant do you simulate that you are being attacked by Decepticons when you are with Annabelle.'**_

_** 'Oh. Sometimes yes. Will and Sarah agreed that it would be a good idea to teach Annabelle to fear Decepticons in a sparkling appropriate manner...Sarah insisted I did not show holographic projections.' **_ Ironhide's reply was deliberately phrased so Chromia didn't catch on that the simulations of Decepticon encounters were portrayed and dealth with however Annabelle saw to make it. Ironhide would never admit that almost all of their games ended with him and Annabelle running away instead of fighting.

Chromia considered this idea of play/teaching and inwardly giggled. There was no way Annabelle would agree to play without them acting as she had just done with Roxanne Glitch. To Ironhide she responded in a light tone, _**'I agree with this method. Even as Annabelle played she convinced her own processor that there was a threat, her spark rate increased greatly in the midst of their false pursuit.'**_

_** 'I trained her, of course she responded accordingly.' **_ The pride and tinge of arrogance Ironhide felt carried over the comm. link causing Chromia to roll her optics. Sometimes she forgets that Ironhide is rather full of himself.

Back inside the house the girls had gone to the kitchen to make supper. Sarah had left them two choices. Kraft Dinner or leftover spaghetti. Annabelle wanted KD, but Roxie preferred spaghetti. At a stale mate they settled the decision the only child appropriate way Roxie knew. Rock, paper, scissors. Much to Roxie's surprise Annabelle beat her all four rounds of it.

As Roxie put the water on to boil she asked her little friend," What kind of music do you like Annabelle?"

Annabelle thought about all the music she heard, and smiled when she replied," High School Musical music."

With her back turned to the five year old Roxie made a repulsed face, in her opinion that movie should not have produced a sequel. The music had catchy beats, but the lyrics were so goody goody it made her eye twitch. Putting the noodles into the water she asked," After supper do you want to try listening to my favourite kind of music? Just one song, and if you don't like it I won't play it anymore, okay?"

"Mmm, okay. Can we watch High School Musical before I go to bed? Pleeease?" Clever Annabelle made big puppy dog eyes and pouted her lower lip. _'Oh, she's good.' _Inwardly sighing at her misfortune Roxie gave a single nod, causing Annabelle to cheer.

Macaroni and cheese with a glass of milk was consumed in quiet with the odd time where Annabelle asked questions. Bowls and cups emptied and put into the dishwasher the girls went to the computer in the living room. Sarah had told Roxie it was okay to use the computer for a little bit, especially if it was to play games with Annabelle. Roxie figured this sort of counted as playing with Annabelle. Turning the volume to a slightly higher notch Roxie plugged in her USB and opened the file folder labelled music. A few of her songs weren't the most appropriate for Annabelle but the song she had chosen was definitely age appropriate. It was 'Caramell Dansen', Roxie was thrilled to see Annabelle's light up in glee when the song started up. Seeing that the song was accepted Roxie felt it was only right to teach Annabelle the dance. She caught on immediately, and in no time at all they were hopping around the house doing the Dansen Dance. Once the song finished Roxie turned to her dance partner asking," Well?"

"That song is cool! What is it called? Do you have more like that? Can we watch High School Musical now?" Annabelle asked all this in return at lightning speed from her dancing energy rush, but even super child speech didn't filter out the last question.

_'Damn! Thought for sure she would forget about it!' _"Yes, we can watch High School Musical now. But your mom wants you to go to bed at 6:30, so we can't watch the whole thing." Annabelle gave a pout at this limitation, it only lasted a brief second which she then plopped onto the couch ready to watch.

Back outside Ironhide made a gurgle noise resembling a kind of snicker, _**'Annabelle's taste in entertainment is the equivalent to torture to certain care takers.' **_He said this to Chromia to explain his behaviour. Chromia turned up her audio receptors to hear what was going on in the house. Having been around Annabelle long enough she caught on to what they were watching and snickered herself. Non of the Autobots,not even Bumblebee, could tolerate the child film that was loved by Annabelle.

For the sake of her charge Roxie sat through the movie up until 6:30 without voicing a single complaint. She was very relieved when she hit the stop button on the DVD remote. Rubbing her eyes Annabelle mumbled sleepily," But I'm not tired Glitch. I don't wanna go to bed."

"You say while rubbing your half closed eyes and yawning. Come on Annabelle, you'll feel much better in your pyjamas and curled up under your blankets." Roxie took hold of Annabelle's hand to lead her upstairs to bed.

Annabelle was very cooperative, she got into her pink Barbie nightie, brushed her teeth and crawled into bed with almost no assistance from Roxie. Tucking the blankets around Annabelle's shoulders Roxie asked," Do you want a bed time story, or a night light on?"

"Mommy leaves the hallway light on and leaves the door open a lil bit. What bed time stories do you know Glitch?" Her eyes were slowly starting to close but Annabelle did her best to keep them open.

"Let's see. Rapunzel, Rumpelstiltskin, Kappa Bridge and Snow White." Roxie listed the ones she knew from memory. When there came no reply Roxie smiled at the sleeping child. Out of all her past babysitting jobs, this one was by far the best.

As Annabelle had requested Roxie left her bedroom door open a crack and the hallway light was left on. Back downstairs in the living room Roxie went to the large purse she had brought with her and got out a book to read.

Outside Ironhide sighed, one of the main reasons he hated care takers was because he couldn't tell Annabelle good night.

The rest of the evening passed in quiet, Roxie would occasionally go check up on Annabelle then returned to her seat to read. Ironhide was coaxed into a minor recharge while Chromia kept watch. When Sarah pulled up to the house Ironhide came out of recharge, flashing his headlights he got Sarah to go over to him. In case Roxie looked outside she went into the garage with Ironhide. "How did things go today Ironhide?"

"Annabelle remained content throughout the day, there were no incidents and Annabelle was fed and put to bed exactly according to your schedule." Ironhide's voice came out clear but still quiet.

Sighing in relief Sarah said," I'm glad to hear that. So there should be no problem with Roxie watching Annabelle from now on, right?"

"I have not given my full approval Sarah. Depending on what intel I receive from Chromia tomorrow I will give my final decision." The smile disappeared and Sarah had her lower lip in her mouth.

Hands on her hips Sarah whispered quite crossly," I do not approve of spying on her Ironhide. You never sent spies on the other babysitters. Why do you need to get more information on her?"

When no answer came Sarah slammed the door shut and stomped over to the garage door. When it closed behind her Chromia asked the weapon specialist curiously,_**'Why didn't you respond to Sarah's question?"**_

_** 'Because she wouldn't accept the answer. You saw how emotional she was, I stopped arguing with her months ago. She won't budge an inch no matter what logic you give her.'**_

_** 'That because you use the wrong logic, us femmes have a more unique view on things. Speaking of other femmes here comes my temporary target. I'll report to you immediately if anything comes up. See you tomorrow Hide.'**_ Roxie had come outside after receiving a big thank you from Sarah.

Walking past the open garage door and the black truck Roxie felt compelled to stop and give it a scrutinizing scowl. Going to her motorcycle she sat down on the seat and frowned," I must be more tired than I thought. Your seat feels different." Roxie shook it off, put on her helmet and sped off into the night on what she thought was her motorcycle.

Ironhide watched the femmes until they were out of his sensory range, able to talk out loud to himself he grumbled," That human is far too perceptive."


	4. See The Evil,Hear The Evil,Crush The Evi

**J: Yay for another update for all you wonderful readers that sent me excellent reviews and added me to your watch! The number of reviews this fanfic has makes me so very very happy! But as always I have some doubts on things and thus turn to you lovely people for answers.**

**In this chapter there is a lot of Chromia involvement, so I want to know. When Chromia changes to her true form can it be considered bi-pedal since she only moves on one tire?**

**And is Ironhide in character?**

**THANKS TO: Duvet **(And I love your user name :3) **Standout4Christ **(Yes, I'm not a person to tolerate short chapters, I enjoy reading lengthy chapters and figured that a lot of other people do as well. Whenever I type up a chapter and see a really low word count I take it as a personal failure lol.) **ultimateanime12 **( Thank you! I just wanted to make sure on that. And everyone needs to have blackmail on them at some point or other teehee.) **lightwolfheart **(You can review under any name and I will always know it's you. And it is good that your internet is up, sorry we haven't talked lately.) **Amethyst Love Girl **(Not continue? Are you a crazy person, I'm on a huge roll with this one! Of course I'll keep working on it until I hit a writer's block, then I'll put it off for a month or so and then get going again!) **psyconinja7 **(besides the people that have been tortured with the song who doesn't love that song? Apparently every anime character known to man does, look at all those youtube vids of them dancing to it! Lol.) **Faecat **(Thank yooooou! You're fanfic is still much much better than mine!)

**Disclaimer: ME NO OWNEE TRANSFORMER PEOPLE!**

**P.S. Just to let all you readers know, my updating will never, and I seriously mean never, be scheduled and patterned. So no promises on when the next one comes out...Sorry :(**

**P.S. For the thank yous is it good the way it is, or should the names be separated? I do everything for you my lovely boys and girls, and will do what is needed to please you :3  
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Chapter Three – See The Evil, Hear The Evil, Crush The Evil**

The first thing Chromia found that she could defend the human femme on was her taste in music. When the triplets had arrived they had done a web search of what music was considered popular among the femmes on Earth, they didn't agree with most choices. Ten minutes down the road Roxanne had turned to a radio station playing 'Never Again' by Kelly Clarkson.

In the end the entire drive back to the city that Roxanne lived in took two hours. When Roxanne got off of Chromia she was shivering to the point where her teeth were chattering. The place they had pulled up in front of was a two story house that had no distinguishing features. Doing her best to keep her teeth clenched together Roxanne put Chromia in neutral and rolled her around to the back. Chromia would have found this normal if Roxanne hadn't put her in a position where she was facing away from the house and pointed towards an open back gate, Roxanne then left her helmet on the one handle. Giving Chromia's seat a firm pat she chattered out," H-hope you're ready f-for another busy d-day starting bright and early tomorrow." Hugging herself for warmth Roxanne went in through the back door, leaving Chromia to wonder what she should expect the next day when she is told something like that.

Chromia was stirred from recharge by the sound of multiple engines coming to the front of the house. Since she was facing the opposite direction Chromia used her sensors to identify the source. If she had been in her true form she would have raised an optic ridge. Outside Roxanne's front door were two police cruisers, two officers, and two suited men.

Her concentration on the men was broken when her audio receptors picked up on the back door squeaking open. Roxanne, a duffel bag on her shoulder and a food item called a Pop-Tart clenched between her teeth, scurried out of the back door, quickly strapped the duffel bag to the back of the seat, hopped on and started the engine.

The officers and suited men heard the engine and went running to the back, just before they got around the house Roxanne took off through the open back gate that led to a smaller road behind various other houses. Driving with one hand and quickly eating the Pop-Tart with the other Roxanne bore a broad smile on her face.

They turned a right corner and were met by another police car, Roxanne let out a bark of laughter and snickered," I was wondering when they'd catch on. Still not good enough!" The last thing she yelled to the policeman that was coming out of the car. Spinning Chromia around to face the way they'd come Roxanne took off and continued further down the minor road. She took another right turn down an open alley that led straight to the main street.

When they came up to a red light Roxanne took the opportunity to put on her helmet, just because she was being pursued by cops didn't mean she needed to get a ticket for unsafe driving from a cop that was doing his normal work. Chromia approved of this, if she could she wouldn't let the human come to harm while riding her. But anything could happen in the city and without the ability to change to her bi-pedal mode there was only so much she could do.

The sound of sirens approaching put a crooked smirk on Roxanne's face beneath her helmet, _'What better way to start the morning than with a small car chase?' _The light turned green and she was off at the highest speed she could go without getting into even more shit. The first thing she had learned about her pursuers was that they wouldn't go after her in the same manner as they would for a street racer, but instead would go after her in a sneaky manner. They would take side streets with less traffic and attempt to cut her off. So far, she's out manoeuvred them and this routine had been going on for almost a year. A joke she shared with Joey was that the police should be sending their new recruits to chase after her to train for street racers.

Coming up to the next intersection Roxanne caught sight of two cruisers en route to create a block. Rolling her eyes at this she looked up at the lights, Lady Luck once more showed her favour as their lights turned red and hers turned green. As she flew past both of them she took a quick risk and waved at the probably livid cops. She came across two more intersections with cruisers attempting to cut her off, the second time required fancy manuevering and the last one she avoided entirely by making a corner cut across the sidewalk with a very audible apology to the pedestrians she almost hurt. Throughout all of this Chromia couldn't figure out why Roxanne was being pursued in the first place, but she was certainly enjoying the human's dodging capabilities.

After the near pedestrian pegging Roxanne decided it was time tot end the game of Cat and Mouse, and quickly pulled up behind a small pizza joint building. Three cop cruisers went by before Roxanne considered it safe to go on the road again, she rolled Chromia up to the street and cursed loudly. They had either known she had hidden behind that building (unlikely) or they had anticipated her decision to hide in general (likely.) One of the original cruisers that had come to her house sat just down the street, the two suited men standing on either side of the car. Chills went through her spine when the taller of the men smiled, getting into the care they immediately set off towards her.

Saying a few more choice words Roxanne raced down the street at a speed she usually saved for outside the city. The sirens started up and Roxanne felt her throat go dry. Whenever the chase reached this level she knew they meant business, which meant more work for her to lose them. Because of the sirens the cars on their way to work moved out of the way, aiding Roxanne in her goal to get free of the suited men's gaze.

As they flew down the streets Roxanne kept tabs on the road names and landmarks, an idea came to her when she spotted a familiar sign advertising for a bar called 'Drake's Drink.' She picked up the speed as much as she dared, she slammed on the brakes and leaned into a sharp right turn to go into the parking lot made for the bar's customers. Killing the engine, putting down the kick stand and running in through back entrance Roxanne barely got in before she heard the cruisers come to a stop outside. Hurrying further inside Roxanne called out," Heey Drake! Time to pay up on that favour you owe me!"

Entering the main area for customers she was met by a wall of flesh that started a good two feet above her. Jogging on the spot Roxanne pleaded," I'm calling on that favour Drake. I need to hide from the monkey suits, like right now. Please?"

The hulking human with black greying hair and beady little eyes scowled down at the barely grown woman, a half second passed before he stepped to the side and jerked his thumb to the set of stairs he'd just come down from. Roxanne threw her arms around the man in a quick hug then scampered upstairs to hide. Not a second later did the men in suits and sunglasses run through the door and almost collide with Drake. His arms crossed Drake politely told the men in a deep baritone," Bar isn't open until 5pm, please come back then."

"Sir, I am Agent Steep and this is Agent Stone, we are with the government. We did not come here to cause trouble, all we ask is for your cooperation in arresting the young woman that came in here just before us." To prove truth to their words both men pulled out their badges and held them above their heads for the very tall and intimidating man to see clearly.

His beady eyes unblinking Drake repeated a little colder," Bar isn't open until 5pm, please come back then." Drake added a very small threat to his words by flexing his tree trunk sized biceps.

Agent Steep and Stone got the underlining message and inwardly sighed, they would have let her win, AGAIN! Adjusting his necktie Agent Steep loudly informed the man, as well as Roxanne," We will leave for today, however, if we return in a similar situation we will have a court warrant to enter the premises." The warning given Agent Steep and Stone left the bar.

Roxanne waited until she heard the cruiser leave before coming back down the stairs, before going all the way down she whispered," Did they leave? Can you see their cars?"

"They are gone. Are they the ones you spoke of before Glitch?" The ice left Drake's eyes and melted into concern when they turned to the now exhausted looking teenager.

Running a hand through her bangs Roxanne sighed," Yea, those were the two. Thanks a lot Drake, I thought they might get me for sure this time. Bastards are like cockroaches, no matter how many times I squish their confidence they come back the next day to try again."

"You should move somewhere else Roxanne, you can only evade them from the beginning for so long. You know you're welcome to move in with me. Or Joey, or Duke, or-"

"Okay, okay. I get it. By the time you finish naming people you'd have to open shop! I'll think about moving, but no promises, alright? And that imitation of the Hulk earned you a free cleaning. Just give me a date and I'm your lady." Laughing Roxanne had cut off Drake before he could name every last man that regularly came to Drake's bar.

Following the girl outside Drake looked over at Roxanne's bike," Good to see your gift is still in pristine condition. Which is saying something after the hell you put it through every blasted day."

"Just because my life sucks cause of those goons doesn't mean I'll subject my gift to the same kind of treatment. Well, I need to get to work, sorry if this brings any trouble for you Drake." Roxanne had sat on her bike and given it an affectionate pat on the side. She put on her helmet, gave Drake a small wave and set off.

Drake watched the young lady that had once been a child of pure innocence. Shaking his head with a weary sigh the old bar tender grumbled to the sky," Evans, you left your daughter with quite a life. You better be watching over her, or I swear I'll kick your ass when I join you."

Chromia had listened to the conversation between the humans from the point Roxanne went inside the building until they had departed. She'd kept the two agents' names on file to give to someone that would look into it for her later. Part of the agreement they had made with the humans stated that the Autobots were not allowed to look at government enlisted personnel files. She also filed away the matter of finding out why Roxanne was pursued so intently by the government. _'Ironhide is definitely going to be paranoid when he gets this info.'_

Ten minutes later Roxanne pulled up to the small cafe she worked at 'Cassey's Cafe.' It was a quaint little place that she'd recently been employed in and Roxanne was quite happy with it. Going in Roxanne smiled at the set up. Bright lighting, mahogany painted walls with the odd picture here and there, and soothing but still upbeat jazz music played throughout the whole joint. Going behind the counter to the staff area Roxanne greeted Cassey Jones with a smile. The woman had beautiful blonde hair, intelligent brown eyes and a personality anyone could love," Hey Cassey, sorry if I'm late."

"Don't worry about it Roxie, you just get your cute little self changed and in the front. I want you serving today." Cassey gave Roxanne a wink and went out to attend the counter for the customers that liked to sit on the bar stools and drool over her. She was a beauty after all.

Rolling her eyes Roxanne sarcastically complained," Oh great, I get stuck serving the cute single men stopping off for a cup of coffee before work." Doing as she was told Roxanne changed into her dark red blouse and skirt trimmed with beige on the hem, cuffs, and collar. She wasn't disappointed when she went out on the floor and spotted at least three young attractive men. _'If I didn't have Joey I would be in heaven. For now I'll accept this as a way of making up for all those terrible mornings out creatively escaping my house.'_

Chromia watched Roxanne go about working for a few minutes through the window before deciding that Ironhide could be given what info she had so far. Compiling it into a formal intel report out of habit she made sure Ironhide wasn't in recharge and sent it off.

Ironhide was just about to patrol the Lennox property when he received Chromia's report. The more he read the more he didn't trust Roxanne Glitch. Changing directions back to the house he was met by Will who was just leaving," Something wrong Ironhide?"

"I have just received some unpleasing news about Roxanne Glitch. Were you aware she is wanted by the government?" Ironhide watched Will's face to decipher his thoughts.

Will's eyes grew a size wider at this bit of information," What? Why?"

"That has yet to be known. You could look into it yourself of course." Ironhide was never a bot for patience, if Will could find out why Roxanne Glitch was wanted for arrest the sooner his processors could rest.

Will thought about this for a moment. Whatever Roxie was wanted for had nothing to do with criminal activity, otherwise Ironhide would have found out when he did a criminal record search. That meant she was seen as valuable to the government, either for information or she had something they wanted. Calming down Will told the massive robot waiting for his response," I'm not going to ask. Just because she's wanted by the government doesn't mean she did something illegal, you would have found anything like that when checking her background. Whatever it is that's going on between Roxie and the government is her problem, and if she comes to trust me or Sarah enough, she might tell us one day. No asking Rob or any of the other soldiers Ironhide."

"What if they come and arrest her while she is taking care of Annabelle Will? What if that happened while I wasn't here either? You should look into it now to be sure that that will not happen." Ironhide couldn't believe his audio receptors, this was not what he wanted to hear from Will.

"Those are valid points Ironhide, but I will not look into it. I'll go let Sarah know to see what she says, but I can tell you now. She's not going to ask me to look into either. Just chill your systems and try not to worry about too much." The glare that Ironhide was giving him at that moment made Will grateful that non of the Autobots, as far as he knew, had lasers in their eyes. Ironhide said nothing and turned away to storm off on patrol.

Will waited until Ironhide's footsteps weren't entirely felt before going back to the house mumbling," Thank god he's on our side."

The rest of Roxanne's day passed at work peacefully, her shift finished at 6 she left promising to share more stories about Annabelle her next shift. Sighing dramatically Roxanne got on Chromia and asked," So how was your day stuck sitting out here? Probably nicer than mine, you didn't get your ass groped twice by perverted old men. The day's almost over though, we just need to see Joey and make sure the goons didn't harass him again. They seem to enjoy tormenting him every time they almost catch me." Chromia listened to Roxanne babble to herself with interest. Chromia had become familiar to the human equivalent to sparkbonding called dating, boyfriend/girlfriend relationships. With Samuel and Mikeala it was amusing to see or hear of, the boy was so insecure that he constantly overreacted and Mikeala did her best to help his self esteem but for the most part she let him be since his awkwardness was often seen as "cute." Chromia wondered if this Joey human was the same as Sam or was more like William Lennox.

Joey's house was on the outskirts of the city, his house was smaller than Roxanne's and much dirtier on the outside. Roxanne chose to ignore the bottles and cans on the lawn and porch and focused only on the man inside. Restricted to the outside Chromia focused her sensors on the occupants inside the human dwelling. From what she could make out the human designated Joey was well built, and stood a foot taller than Roxanne, but that was all Chromia could make out.

Inside Roxanne found Joey packing stuff up in boxes, confused since he had never told her anything about moving before Roxanne asked," Are-are you going somewhere Joey?"

The 22 year old male with long brown hair and dark grey eyes froze in the middle of putting his tupperware in the box. Standing up slowly and facing the girl he had fallen in love with back in high school Joey felt like a criminal caught in the act of escaping prison. No hint of a charming smile on his face he answered in a weary voice," Yes, I'm moving. I'm getting out of this city as fast and as far as I can."

"What happened? What did those suited bastards do?" Roxanne knew something had happened, it was the only explanation for this sudden decision.

Joey's face hardened, just as his heart ad earlier that day. "Two things happened. First, they got me fired, they took away my job Roxanne! And then they told me the truth. They told me why they've been chasing you for all this time! You've put me through so much shit! All for the sake of what? I went through cop chases, home invasion and now unemployment for the sake of something so small and invaluable that it's completely not worth it."

"So sorry for trying to protect the last things I have from my father! I'm sorry you lost your job, and I'm sorry for making your like a misery. You know I tried to keep you out of it, but you were the one that insisted on helping me anyway you could. If you want to blame all your shit on someone blame it on the goons! They were the ones that got you fired, not me!" Roxanne would not tolerate anyone that would bad mouth her gifts from her father. Not even the guy she loved since her first year of high school.

"If I had known that this was about some do-dads that could be made by anyone then I wouldn't have offered. And you know what, after I learned what this was all about I was more than willing to help them." To show what he was talking about Joey threw a small key chain ring with no key but a little grinning heart attachment.

Her heart rate racing Roxanne whispered," Joey, you didn't. Please tell me you didn't."

"I did, I gave Agent Steep and Agent Stone your house key. I want my key back from you now, I need to give them to the landlord when I leave tomorrow night." Joey held out his hand, his patience for Roxanne gone.

Without even thinking Roxanne lashed out and slapped Joey across the face as hard as she could. Digging into her pocket she took out his key and threw it down at his feet. Tears running down her cheeks Roxanne hissed," I hope you move into a hole and drink yourself to death you fucking asshole." She then ran out of the house and her relationship and drove straight for home as fast as she could.

Chromia had heard the whole exchange and completely agreed with Roxanne's last words to the horrible male human. Joey did not just break up with Roxanne, he had completely demolished her trust in him. If the Autobots weren't against harming humans she just might have ruined her good name by removing one of his arms or legs.

Roxanne played it safe and cut the engine a block back from her house. Rolling Chromia with her in neutral she got to the corner and peaked around to look for any cruisers. Much to Roxanne's dismay the cruisers were in front of her house and all the lights were on in her house. "Dammit! Knowing those bastards they'll probably stay there for as long as they can and when they leave they'll take anything they deem important. Guess I'm spending the night at Drake's after all." With a sigh of defeat Roxanne spun Chromia around and took off for Drake's bar for the second time that day. Sensing that nothing more informative would happen Chromia sent along her last compilation of intel.

Will and Sarah were out on the back porch enjoying each other's company on the porch swing when Ironhide received the new report of information. Ironhide had just said good night to Annabelle and had taken one step when the report scrolled across his optics. The words didn't bother Ironhide as much as the sound clip that had been sent along with the report. The recording of Roxanne's fight with Joey laid much heavier on his processor. He never could understand how humans could switch from one love interest to another, the constant depression attached to the separation would drive any Cybertronian to deactivate eventually.

Will could see something was wrong when Ironhide had not moved for over three minutes. Getting to his feet he asked," What did Chromia tell you about Roxanne Ironhide?"

"I have just received news from Chromia confirming your theory, the government is after Roxanne not for a crime but for something she posses." Ironhide deliberately didn't continue with the other information, he had promised to share any information of significance. He doubted Roxanne's love life would be deemed important.

"There's more isn't there Ironhide?"But of course Sarah was someone that saw anything related to Roxanne Glitch as interesting. Sarah's expression was stiff and just daring Ironhide to lie to her.

Venting out a sigh Ironhide reluctantly added," The mate she was in a relationship with betrayed her by giving the government officials entrance to her home. As it stands she is spending tonight with a friend." From Sarah and Will's stricken expressions this bit of information was definitely unexpected.

Turning on Will Sarah crossed her arms and demanded," You're going to go on the house. You're going to call whoever you have to, and you're going to make them stop ruining that girl's life. Now."

"Sarah, you know I don't have that kind of say. My connections are military only, what Roxie is dealing with is the FBI most likely. I can call around to see what exactly is making them chase her, but that's about it." Will had put his hands on Sarah's shoulders to make the message clear.

"According to Chromia the object which they wish to obtain is insignificant to others, but a gift from her father, thus why she refuses to hand it over." Ironhide added this information to see if it would somehow aid the human couple in their thoughts.

Throwing her hands up in the air in exasperation Sarah fumed," This is ridiculous Will. That girl does not deserve this kind of treatment. Ironhide, if anything else happens to Roxie you let me know immediately. I'm going in to do the dishes."

The two male beings watched the raging woman go back indoors, leaving them to think of what she could do to those government officials. Looking back up at the Autobot Will asked," Do you need any help with her motorcycle? You said you needed to switch them back tonight."

"Right, I almost forgot. Chromia would have deactivated my if I didn't show up." Ironhide shivered a little at the thought of the punishment he would have received from Chromia had Will not reminded him.

As he changed to his alt mode and waited for Will to get Roxanne's original bike he asked himself," Why are femmes so scary?" As if to add more to the question there was a loud clatter of dishes from inside the house. _'Good thing they didn't use the good dishes on Thursdays.'_

Ironhide waited until about midnight to head into tow to find Chromia, they made the switch back with ease and took off back for the Lennox home. Throughout most of the night Chromia insisted that Roxanne remain Annabelle's care taker. After such a devastating emotional blow spending time with Annabelle would make the older girl feel better. Ironhide told Chromia about his agreement with Will about the care taker position and that Roxanne could keep the job depending on those conditions. That didn't settle the issue entirely, but it didn't get dropped either. Both Autobots decided they could argue about it better after a good recharge.


	5. Knocked Down A Peg

**J: As promised my duckies, here is the next chapter you were all hoping for instead of that Shout Out lol. Since my last chapter I was very pleased with the increase in watchers and favouriters, thank you all you new people! I hope I don't disappoint! And since no one has complained about my method of saying thank you it shall remain the same.  
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**THANKS TO: Standout4Christ **(See, I didn't forget! This is my current obsession so it should hold out maybe a month or two longer lol. And because of your review you have made me alter some things, which is a good thing :3 And sorry to say Roxie is just a human.) **Vampire Girl Alex **(Thank you, but I'm only going to go so far with reviews ;3 As to your question, nope, I write this all by myself, but I have been considering Beta hunting.) **lightwolfheart **(About time :P And no I can't kill Joey, the bastard needs to make another appearance later on.) **ultimateanime12 **(You didn't see that coming did you? xD) **GreenpplOMG **(it's okay if you don't review every chapter, just every once in a while is nice to boost the review numbers :3) **Psyconinja7 **(I full heartedly agree, I'm more than positive that Roxanne is my best OC thus far.) **ironaft30 **(Don't you love it when you find a fanfic with nice lengthy chapters and is still growing? Those are the ones I really look for and thought that most other people would as well :3)

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN TRANSFORMERS, HASBRO DOES, BUT THEY DO NOT OWN MY ROXANNE!**

**P.S. I've decided that later on in the story I'm going to change who the main characters will revolve around, so for those of you that are reading for Ironhide and Annabelle, I apologize now because there is only so much I can do to keep them in here as it goes down the plot.  
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Chapter Four – Knocked Down A Peg**

Bright and early the next morning Chromia departed promising to come visit again so she could spend some time with Annabelle. Annabelle made her cross her spark that it would be before her birthday. On the road going at speeds that would be classified as illegal and dangerous she sent ahead all the information she'd gathered on Roxanne to Ratchet. The medic had been so intrigued by the human's advanced hearing that he had requested for the same information Ironhide would be receiving.

There came no immediate response which made Chromia worry for Roxanne, when Ratchet began to think the person who was being thought about usually ended up in his med bay for extended periods of time.

_**'I think I would like to meet her myself.' **_Ratchet's words caused Chromia to abruptly brake and pull over to the side of the road.

Her holoform made it appear that she was talking on a cellular device to prevent surprise from passersby. Her tone suspicious Chromia asked,_**' And just how do you plan to do that?'**_

_** 'I believe Annabelle is overdue for a check up from her Uncle Ratchet.' **_There was genuine fondness towards the thought, he enjoyed giving Annabelle check ups to see the progression of the human body. And Annabelle was an excellent patient.

Her holoform put a hand on her hip to reflect her tone,_**'If you get permission to go then let me come along as well, I should get to meet her personally after all the fun we had yesterday.'**_

_** 'That will be Optimus' call Chromia, but I myself see no problem with it. Roxanne would probably be more comfortable with another femme present.'**_

_** 'I didn't think about that. Here's hoping then. Chromia out.'**_

_** 'Chromia to Optimus.'**_

_** 'Optimus here. What is it Chromia?' **_Optimus sounded a little different over the comm. link but Chromia couldn't name what had changed.

_**'Optimus, I'm requesting permission to join Ratchet in his trip to the Lennox property.'**_

_** 'Chromia the agreement was only for one Earth cycle. For what reason do you wish to go back?' **_ Optimus was a patient and fair leader, all the Autobots knew this. So if he declined her request then Chromia would obey with little to no complaint, but she hoped that he would allow her the chance to go back.

_**'I wish to accompany Ratchet so that I might get to know Roxanne on a more personal level. She..interest me. I also swore on my spark to spend more time with Annabelle.' **_Though Chromia was honest she felt the mention of her promise to Annabelle was necessary, like Ironhide Optimus was a big softie for Annabelle. The child just had that ability to make everyone love her.

The sigh was there when Optimus responded,_**' Very well Chromia, you may join Ratchet to the Lennox farm. However, once Ratchet leaves so will you, no exceptions.'**_

_** 'Understood sir, I will return to the base with Ratchet once he is done. Chromia out.' **_ A glamourous smile spread across Chromia's holoform face, she loved it when she got her way.

Back at the Lennox farm Will was in the kitchen with Annabelle while Sarah was upstairs taking a shower, when the phone rang Will groaned. These days the phone only rang for three reasons. One: Sarah's mother asking when Annabelle would be coming to visit again. Two: The babysitter letting them know that she was far too scared to come back. Three: Another Decepticon had shown up and was causing enough shit to warrant destruction by the hands of the Autobots. The first two were tolerable, the third one he hated the most. Taking a calming breathe he picked up the phone and responded out of habit," Lennox speaking."

"William, this is just a customary call to let you know I'll be stopping by today." Ratchet's voice caused Will to let out the breathe he thought he had let out before picking up the phone.

Reclining back in his chair Will asked," Hey Ratchet, why the sudden house call?"

"It has just come to my attention that Annabelle is overdue for a check up, if Sarah agrees then I will be there by three this afternoon."

"I don't see...Ratchet, you know about Roxanne and want to do a scan on her don't you?" Despite the accusation Will was making he couldn't stop the smile that came onto his face. Roxanne was slowly becoming the focus of the Autobots, whether that was good or bad was yet to be determined.

Ratchet's voice held a ruffled tone to it when he replied," My main agenda is to check Annabelle's health, if Roxanne Glitch accepts I wouldn't mind giving her one as well."

Laughing Will went upstairs since he'd heard the shower stop running," You're quite sneaky you know that Ratchet? Ironhide has the right to be afraid of you."

Outside of the bathroom door Will covered the mouth piece and knocked," Sarah! Ratchet wants to know if he can come give Annabelle a check up today?"

The door opened for Sarah to poke her head out of the bathroom," At what time would he be here and is it just Annabelle he wants to give a check up?"

Will smiled broader, he'd forgotten that Ironhide often complained about Ratchet to Sarah as well. "He'd get here around 3, and if Roxie wants he'd gladly give her a check up as well."

Sarah rolled her eyes and snapped," It's bad enough Ironhide got Chromia to spy on her for a day, now a giant alien doctor wants to examine her. I'm fine with Annabelle getting a check up but you tell Ratchet he is not to harass Roxie into it or I will put my biggest frying pan so deep in his gears they'd have to dismantle him to get it out."

The bathroom door closed and Will put the phone back to his ear," Did you catch that last part I do I need to repeat it?"

"No no. I heard her clear enough, and I will take her words seriously."

"Good, cause I'm not nearly brave enough to make that threat. Does Ironhide know about this?" The thought came to mind when he heard the mech thumping around outside the house, probably playing with Annabelle.

"I intend to inform Ironhide once we have finished speaking, he will not take it well I'm sure." Ratchet's voice carried a groan for an old grievance. The old grievance being Ironhide's dislike of Ratchet's profession and avoiding it like the plague.

Holding back a chuckle he smiled when saying," Alright, I'll leave you to that then. I'll go let Annabelle know you're coming by." He then hung up and shook his head at the phone. The Autobots may be awesome fighters, but their behaviour around others often causes amusement for the humans.

The sound of Ironhide shifting down to his alt mode and retreating to the garage cued Will onto the temper tantrum he'd expected. The garage door closed and then came the loud engine revving and multiple curse words. After the first couple of temper tantrums Will got his garage sound proofed so no one could ear him from outside, but if someone listened they could hear him from inside.

Annabelle came inside a minute later, going straight to Will she giggled," Ironhide put himself in time out again."

Laughing outright now Will pulled her onto his lap and added," Yes, I hear that. I think it's going to be a long time out too. Do you know why he put himself in time out?"

Annabelle shook her head sending her two little pony tails swinging around. Sounding as calm as he could Will answered his own question," Ironhide is talking to Ratchet. Ratchet is going to come over today to give you a check up. Just a check up, no needles, I promise."

Annabelle's smile didn't falter but her voice was a little more quiet," If it's just a check up then that's okay. I like Ratchet, he gives me candy when I'm good."

"And he doesn't have to fix your cavities. Ratchet it going to be here around 3, so that gives you two hours to clean your room and play with Ironhide. Roxie will be coming back to watch you for the afternoon. Do you remember what you do when Ratchet or Ironhide has their movie people out?" 'Movie people' was the term Ironhide had come to accept for their holoforms, the other Autobots made sure to use that name for it around Annabelle because it was too cute to risk losing.

Annabelle's face scrunched up in a cute showing of thinking, when she finally remembered she answered loudly," When Ironhide or Ratchet use their movie people I call them Uncle 'Hide or Uncle Ratchet."

"Good girl. You tell Roxie that after supper you get a cookie, Daddy's orders." Will had to give his beautiful baby girl a kiss on the top of her head after making this promise and getting a happy cheer in response. _ 'I have been blessed with the most perfect child known to mankind. What other little girl would be absolutely fine with a giant alien robot for a doctor?'_

"Don't tell Ratchet about the cookie or he won't give her any candy when he's done her check up." Ironhide had gone back outside and told this to Will through the open kitchen window. Ironhide loved the Earth season called summer, the windows were constantly open and Annabelle was home every day.

To show she wouldn't say a word to Ratchet Annabelle made a zipper motion across her mouth. Will ruffled her hair and put her back on her feet so she could run back outside to continue playing with Ironhide. "She knows she still needs to clean her room before Roxie comes over right?" Sarah had come into the kitchen brushing her hair just as Annabelle had run out of the house.

"Yes, I told her she has two hours in total. After an hour I'll call her back in to clean her room." Will stood from his seat to embrace his wife clad in her bathrobe smelling of peaches, God how he loved that smell.

Smiling she nuzzled into his neck deeply inhaling his cologne. She had stopped putting a brand name on it years ago and simply went with calling it Will's smell, even if she smelt it from another man it wasn't the same. She had hated it when Will had come home at last only to tell her that he was being promoted to work with an alien race of robots, entailing that he would spend months away from home at a time. Once she got to know Ironhide and the other Autobots she couldn't put the blame on them, and instead put her separation frustrations on the Decepticons. After the incident in Egypt Will had been allowed a two month semi-reprieve from duty. The only catch was that he had to go to a stuffy meeting at an old base in the middle of nowhere. The old base, after three weeks of reconstruction, had been converted to an R and R location for the Autobots if they chose to leave the main N.E.S.T base in Diego Garcia. Thus why Chromia and Ratchet are able t get to the Lennox home in a decent amount of time. Sighing Sarah mumbled against Will's throat," Is there any way for you to stay home today?"

"I wish, but the higher ups made it clear I couldn't miss a meeting without just cause, and sadly a beautiful day and a lovely woman does not count as a just cause. Besides, if you didn't give me a ride into town then you'd still have to go to work. We'll do something nice this weekend, a little family vacation. Maybe a trip to the beach." Will spoke all this in a soft soothing voice rocking them both back and forth.

"We're going to the beach? When? When are we going to the beach Daddy?" The tender moment bubble was popped by Annabelle going back inside to get her fairy wings.

"Oh great,I just got the last of the Egyptian sand out of my gears and now we're going to another place to put more sand in them." Looking to the open window the family found Ironhide looking in at them with a disgruntled expression at the topic of discussion.

Sarah visibly sucked in her lips to prevent herself from laughing at the memory of Ironhide scratching at his butt for over a week when they'd gotten home from Egypt. "Don't worry Ironhide, we'll take my car and you can stay home or go to the R and R base for the day."

"With Megatron and that deranged Starscream still out and about? I think absolutely not. I will take you to the horrible sand covered beach and there's no arguing about it!" It wouldn't be until later the next day that Ironhide clued into the reverse psychology that Sarah had just used. However at that point in time he felt that the Lennox family just needed a reminder of the current situation.

Will was about to reassure Ironhide that they wouldn't dare to leave home without him but was stopped when Ironhide switched to his alt mode and drove over to the garage. Exchanging a confused look with Sarah Will hurried outside to see what had caused Ironhide's sudden retreat to the garage. Unable to see anything he opened his mouth to ask what was wrong when the sound of a motorcycle reached his ears. Squinting down the road he could just make out Roxie on her motorcycle. As she got closer he could tell something was wrong. Her steering was all over the place and it almost looked like she was leaning on the handles. Going back to the house at a run he opened the door to hastily give orders out of habit," I think Roxie's hurt, Annabelle I want you to go sit with Ironhide until we know what's going on. Sarah let's go."

Sarah wasn't a woman to be pushed around but her motherly instincts drove off her temper. She gave Annabelle a small push towards the garage door then rushed outside to join Will to keep an eye on Roxie's approach.

Annabelle would normally do as her parents told her when something bad happened, but Annabelle wanted to help her friend. Determined the little girl went to the table and grabbed the phone, she'd used it a few times before to talk to her grandma or to her Daddy when he was away, this was plenty of experience to know what to do. Hitting the redial number she put the phone to her ear and waited for the other end to pick up.

Will's fear was confirmed when Roxie ungracefully came to a stop on the grass and fell over with the bike on top of her, the engine still running. Moving faster than Will Sarah ran to the motionless girl and pulled her out from beneath the bike. Taking off her helmet that was sporting a decent sized crack on the right side Sarah's worry only increased to see Roxie's face contorted into a pained wince. Her voice as calm as she could keep it Sarah gently shook the girl asking," Roxie? Roxanne? What happened sweetie? Roxie?"

"S-Sarah? I-I'm sorry. This was the only place I could think of, I'm sorry. Arrgh!" Roxie had opened her eyes to find herself in Sarah's arms. Her voice was a croak from being parched, and she couldn't move without feeling the pain that had driven her to go to the Lennox farm to begin with.

Will had turned off the bike but not before noticing the massive gauges and scratches all on the right side. Joining Sarah he saw what he had expected after seeing the bike. Up the side of Roxie's right leg and arm the fabric of her grey cargo pants and black leather jacket were torn to shit, showing the flesh underneath to be just as ripped up and bleeding a significant amount. Going to that side since Sarah had the other Will spoke just as calmly as Sarah had," Roxie you did the right thing. We're going to help you, we need to move you inside first though. This is going to hurt like a bitch but it needs to be done." Roxie gave a nod to show she understood and clenched her teeth together.

Will and Sarah moved quick to get it over with. Working together they lifted Roxie off the ground, she managed to restrain herself to only letting out a loud whimper. Matching their footing to keep in synch the couple got up the front steps and through the door. Deciding that Annabelle needed to be shielded from Roxie's condition for a while they slowly ascended the stairs carefully so as not to jostle Roxie's injuries further. Oh so gently they laid her down on the bed in the guest bedroom. Sarah immediately took charge and kicked Will out demanding that he get the First Aid supplies, only to knock and hand them to her from outside the room. Injured or not Roxie didn't need to be haunted by the embarrassment of Will seeing her in her undergarments.

His job done Will sought out his daughter to let her know Roxie was okay. He was relieved to find her in the garage just as she had been instructed, picking her up he answered the question that both Annabelle and Ironhide had wanted to ask," Roxie will be fine, she's got some pretty bad road rash and deep scratches, but that's it."

"Can I see her Daddy? Please?" Annabelle trusted her Daddy that Glitch was going to be okay, she just needed to see with her own eyes.

"Mommy is upstairs putting bandages on Roxie's big booboos right now. Once Mommy comes downstairs and says its okay you can go see her ." Annabelle nodded, he hadn't said no, just that she had to wait a little longer. Reassured Annabelle allowed herself to be put down then went running to her room to clean it up.

"What do you think happened Will?" The way that Ironhide asked this clearly implied that he knew the answer, and that Will should know it too.

Turning to face the Autobot in truck form Will replied gravely," What happened was the government going too far. This is criminal treatment, not the pursuit of a teenager that refuses to hand over something that rightfully belongs to her. I won't do anything now, but it Roxie tells us that that is exactly what happened then I'm making some phone calls to people that can make BETTER phone calls."

Ironhide had to admit, when William Lennox liked someone and they got hurt by something he could handle, he was quite the force to be reckoned with. His face still grim Will left Ironhide to return to the kitchen for a fresh cup of coffee. He now had a just cause for not going to the meeting, if need be he'd lie claiming Roxie to be his niece, hell he'd even claim her as an adopted daughter if it came down to it!

Sarah interrupted his train of thought when she came into the kitchen looking worn. Without asking she took a swig of his coffee, an indication that she was troubled since Will drank his coffee black, and Sarah hated black. Finally making eye contact with Will Sarah sighed," She's resting now, which is good. She told me she'd woken up at 4am just to get some essentials from her house and not get caught."

"She tell you what happened then?"

"No, she said she didn't want to only tell one of us, and felt that it was only fair to tell the truth to both of us at the same time. She also said sorry so many times. Roxie may be 19 years old but she's still a little girl Will. We should get a hold of her family and make sure they know what's going on."

His eyes cast down on his coffee mug now Will struggled with his words," From what it sounds like, I don't think she has any family now except for this Drake person, and I doubt he's actually family either."

Fighting back tears Sarah sniffed," It's not right Will. Why does she have to go through all this bullshit? And now that that bastard Joey broke up with her she has no one to lean on."

"I think, she might want us to lean on for support Sarah. She did say this was the only place she could think of to go to for help. Roxie must trust us, even if a little." Will got up from his chair and embraced Sarah from behind as he said this, doing his best to give his wife the comfort she needed.

Sarah let a couple of tears fall to accompany her small sniffles and shallow breathes. Managing to compose herself she leaned furhter into her husband's hold," I'm going to believe yours words and hope we don't somehow betray that small piece of trust...Is that...Is that Ratchet? I thought you said he wouldn't get here until 3pm." The weight laying on Will and Sarah's mind seemed to partially life at the sight of the yellow rescue hummer vehicle.

Annabelle came running into the kitchen with a smile on her face for her handiwork. Seeing that her parents were confused Annabelle told them," When you and Daddy went outside to help Glitch to bed I called Ratchet so he can fix her."

"You, young lady, are going to make an excellent military commander one day. That was a very good thing you did, poor Ratchet must be exhausted though, and it looks like Chromia came back with him." Will had scooped up and swung Annabelle around a couple times then stopped at the sound of a motorcycle. Chromia, back to her original colour of purple, had pulled up next to Ratchet. Since she needed a holoform out when driving in daylight her holoform went on ahead of Ratchet's.

Chromia's holoform had long brown wavy hair, a face of 30 years (give or take) and wore tight fitting jeans and leather jacket that showed her cleavage. She got to the door at the same time Sarah opened it for her guests, letting her in as well as Ratchet's holoform carrying a large medical bag she told them quietly," Thank you for getting here so fast. She's resting upstairs but I don't think she'll mind waking up for a doctor."

Ratchet's holoform, a well toned man in late 30's with a bushy moustache, brown hair closely resembling Will's, brown pants, blue button up shirt and tie, nodded. While they went upstairs Chromia went to the garage.

Leaning against the door frame she gave Ironhide a look saying," You might as well activate your holoform and join us sour puss. I'm sure Annabelle would like that."

"Hmph. I'll set up my holoform and go out there when I'm good and ready." Though he grumbled this Ironhide did set up his holoform. A bald man in his late 40's with a vicious scar across his left eye, dressed in a black muscle shirt and standard issue army cargo pants. The holoform gave Chromia a gruff look and walked past her ignoring the small giggle she made at his act of machoness.

When Ironhide's holoform entered the kitchen he was immediately tackle hugged by Annabelle. Smiling he didn't hesitate to do as Will had done not too long ago and swung her around in the air," It's been a while since I've used my movie person to play with you hasn't it Annabelle?"

"Yes, and it was right in the middle of my tea party when you left! Mr. Wiggly was really mad." Annabelle was too young to understand embarrassment, but she did understand that Ironhide didn't like his friends to know what he played. Ironhide gave Annabelle a small scowl while she grinned big and bright at him. Behind them Will had to cough to try and cover his laugh and Chromia just made sure to keep Annabelle's words on file for late discussion/ black mail.

Putting Annabelle down Ironhide whispered to the smug little girl," Good come back, wrong bot. I'll get you back little missy." Annabelle only laughed and went over to Chromia to get a hug.

"Will, Roxie wants to talk to us now." Everyone turned to the stairs where Sarah stood with Ratchet. Will didn't say anything and felt he didn't need to, so he followed Sarah back upstairs.

Ratchet joined the other two, his expression somewhat confused. Annabelle knew the expression on everyone's face meant that they needed to talk about something secret, and she couldn't go with Mommy or Daddy. Sighing Annabelle went to her room to play with her dollies until everyone was done being boring.

The Autobots appreciated the little girl's actions and silently agreed they'd give her the best birthday present possible next month," How was she Ratchet?"

"Nothing serious Chromia, just some shallow scrapes and a bad case of road rash. She'll be back in top condition in a couple of weeks."

"Your words say good news, but your expression says something's wrong. Spill it Ratchet."

"Nothing wrong so much as complicated. Roxanne knows about us Ironhide, and she said she'd talk to us if we wanted once she's done talking to Will and Sarah."

This unexpected news threw both Ironhide and Chromia for a loop, they'd been sure she hadn't picked up on them. She always had her," Her ear mufflers! She's not wearing them is she?" The realization made Ironhide curse at himself for not thinking to double check with Will or Sarah before bringing her into the house.

"I believe...This was bound to happen eventually with her being Annabelle's care taker. Did you talk to Optimus about this Ratchet?" Chromia put a reassuring hand on Ironhide's shoulder to make sure he didn't beat himself up over it.

Ratchet gave a small nod," Optimus has been made aware, he said that Ironhide especially should speak with Roxanne. Besides that the decision is our own. I myself am wanting to get to know her better, her hearing should not be left unchecked."

"I want to speak with her too, I believe I owe it to her after everything that has happened." Chromia smiled confidently, she would not regret speaking with Roxanne in person. It was why she returned to the Lennox farm to begin with.

Ironhide had assumed this would happen so said nothing. All three holoforms, though they knew it was rude, went upstairs to quietly listen to the story of Roxanne Glitch.


	6. The Story of Roxanne

**J: See, this is what a lot of reviews do for me, they give me the drive to update much quicker! It also helps that this chapter was fairly short. Seeing as I have class again soon I'm gonna type fast meaning there will be mistakes!**

**THANKS TO: Standout4Christ **(Ahha, yea...really starting to consider a beta...lol.) **ultimateanime12 **(Roxie would be your bestest buddy if she heard you say that lol.) **AiriiSpade **(Thank you new reviewer! I also hope that I can keep this going until the end, and it really helps hearing you say you'll stick till the end :3) **Vampire Girl Alex **(You're very welcome, if possible I will always try and answer questions.) **lightwolfheart **(no comment, cause you already know :P) **Psyconinja7 **(Nope, and there's far more for Roxie to endure, but she's tough, she'll hold through "hint,hint,wink,wink.") **Captainjuice **(First I have to be honest and say that I thought your name read Captain Justice at first, when I corrected myself I laughed so hard. I really love your name :3 And you're the first reviewer I've ever made swoon...it was a good swoon right?) **ironaft30 **(I have already messaged you in concerns to your request, and there is more of their adventures to come!)

**DISCLAIMER:...NOT ENOUGH TIME TO!**

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Chapter Five: The Story of Roxanne**

Roxanne owed Sarah more than just the use of the guest best at that moment. Sarah had bandaged her wounds,given her a pair of pajamas to wear and had even had the patience to wait for her to tell her the truth to both her and Will. With all the work Sarah had done to help her Roxanne felt telling the truth was the very least she could do for her.

Sarah sat next to Roxanne against the head board and Will sat on the end of the bed. Both adults didn't dare as any questions or try to prompt her, she would tell them what was going on when she was good and ready. Taking a deep breathe Roxanne started," First you should know that my real name is Roxanne Rose Evans, I've only been Roxanne Glitch for a year or so. I changed it to try and put some distance between me and the government."

"You already know I was born with accute hearing, and because of my hearing I've been classified as a beautiful test subject for the government's medical research team since the day my hearing was made public. To be able to have a group of people that can detect electronical equipment and devices within a 10 foot radius, it would make the government almost immune to espionage. Out in the army they could locate snipers before they can start picking off men." At the mention of the army Roxanne gave Will an apologetic glance, he only nodded to let her know he didn't take it personally but still found it bothersome to hear.

"My Dad didn't want any of that nonsense for me, so to keep me safe he joined another part of the military that promised to give me protection for as long as he worked for them. The protection lasted up until four years ago when he died and that faction of the military disbanded. The FBI didn't start pursuing me full out until they'd learned that my Dad had invented a unique device from his research and had given it to me for safe keeping."

"For the past year and a half I've been taking small time jobs to keep myself a float while I constantly out run and hide from Agent Stone and Agent Steep. Those two have decided to make me their only goal in life. I learned that this morning the hard way." Getting to the present Roxanne rubbed her arm above the bandages that Dr. Ratchet had secured after checking over the wounds.

"My ex-boyfriend gave the bastards the house key I'd given him so I stayed at a family friend's last night. Early this morning I snuck into my house to grab some essentials, but I wasn't fast enough. The sneaky assholes actually had an ambush set for me, I only got away by punching Agent Stone in the face and jumping out the back first floor window. They went into pursuit immediately, they drove faster and manoeuvred quicker than I knew they could. Meaning they've just been holding back until today. I was so set on getting away I didn't use enough caution for a sharp turn I made, I of course went scraping along the road and straight into a wall. Without even thinking to make sure my bike wasn't going to explode I jumped right back on and took off again. Through the pain I made the decision to come here without thinking about the goons coming after me."

Roxanne hung her head in shame, her voice holding a slight quiver for the tears she was holding back," If they show up within the next 24 hours and cause you trouble, I'm sorry. I don't even deserve all the help you've given me." When she finished Sarah pulled her into a hug and she just let go. She cried from the stress she'd been dealing with, from the heartache that Joey had caused, from the fear she'd felt this morning when she'd almost been caught, and from the pain she'd ignored until getting to the Lennox farm. She'd needed the comfort and feeling of safety Sarah and Will were providing, it had been taken away when her father died, and for that one moment she felt it again.

Sarah had hugged Roxie out of motherly instinct to comfort a frightened and hurt child. With her arm wrapped around her she felt it was right. Roxie had turned into the embrace for more security, Sarah could just tell.

In Roxie's history there was no mention of a mother, leaving Sarah to assume the worst. Her father had probably loved her as much as her mother have if not more, but when it came to hugs mothers knew just the right way to give them. As Roxie cried Sarah stroked the top of her head to try and calm her down. Looking over at Will it didn't surprise her to see that he had gone stiff and grim faced, she could only imagine what was going through his mind.

Everything Roxie said had sunk in and absorbed into Will's mind, among her words particular statements had stuck out the most. The mention of the government faction that her father worked for, that faction disbanding four years ago as well as her father's death. When he put the pieces together they made a really bad picture that Will had to accept, everything just lined up to good to be coincidence. _'Now isn't the time to ask though, right now she needs to rest and recover.'_ Letting his thoughts go he put a hand on Roxie's leg and told her softly," You did the right thing to come here, they can't get you here. I would never let them get you, and neither would Sarah. I want you to stay with us until you're healed and have a plan."

"I-I can't bring you into my mess, I'm just your babysitter!" Having heard Will's suggestion Roxie pulled away from Sarah to clearly shake her head and decline.

"No Roxie, you're staying here even if I have to handcuff you to the bed. I'm not letting you leave this house to endure more harassment like what you endured today. Let those federal agents try and come into my house, I'm a mean mother with a frying pan." Sarah made Roxie look her right in the eye to make sure she heard every word.

Smiling a little at the thought of Sarah bashing Agent Stone and Agent Steep in the face with her cast iron frying pans Roxie sniffed," If I stay can it just be considered a temporary live-in babysitter situation? It wouldn't feel right for me to stay here for nothing."

"If that would make you feel better than sure. It doesn't mean we'll actually treat you like a full time babysitter though. You're staying here to relax, just don't forget that." The matter coming to a close Will got up from the bed to smile down at the confident young woman he'd met earlier just that week.

A light knock on the door got Sarah to her feet with a last reassuring shoulder squeeze. Will opened the door to reveal the three holoform beings he had almost forgotten about in the midst of all the information he had learned. "I don't mean to be rude Will but I must return to the base shortly and I would like to speak with Ms. Glitch before then."

"Yea sure, no problem. C'mon Sarah, Annabelle is probably ready for a snack." Will stepped aside to let the three guests step into the room then left with a hesitant Sarah behind him.

Once the door shut Roxanne knew she had a whole new story to tell, only this one was unbelievable even to herself.

**-Meanwhile Out in Space-**

"Uugh, Scalpel, what is your diagnosis?" Megatron sat upon the throne that had once been occupied by his master The Fallen. If he could he would be pacing and throwing things about from his current pain. Except thus mentioned pain was throwing off his equilibrium, making any movement off balanced and hard to control.

The tiny insect like doctor known as Scalpel scurried off of Megatron's head and down to the armrest next to Megatron's clenched claw," My investigations show that you are missing pieces from both audio receptors. From the symptoms I vould have to say you are missing your audio dampeners, they are small little pieces that dilute the amount of noise your receptors take in."

"If you know the problem then behead another mech and fix it, I can't tolerate this much longer!" To emphasize his words Megatron slammed his fist down on the armrest just a meter away from squishing Scalpel.

Backing up to the edge of the arm rest Scalpel eyed the jump he would need to make to save himself in a moment," It vill not vork like that this time. Only the original parts vill vork for your audio receptors." As Scalpel had spoken Megatron began to growl his displeasure. Again he slammed his fist down on the armrest this time aiming for Scalpel. The tiny field medic leapt off of the armrest and onto the ground to then hide himself behind a piece of debris.

Projecting his voice to heard Scalpel called out to his lord," It vill not take long to find them Master, the humans! Remember the humans had you frozen, those humans must know vere they are!"

Megatron hated to be reminded of his past captivity, but Scalpel had been right. Though he had been frozen all those years Megatron had still been subconscious to feel and hear everything. A particular nano memory surfaced from his processor that made Megatron ease back.

Megatron's eyes briefly dimmed, a sign that he was accessing information either from his own processor or from the human's world wide web. When they came back to full light his face contorted into a cruel smirk. Scalpel knew that smirk, that was the smirk Megatron created when he had a being in mind he'd like to 'talk' to. "Yes Lord Megatron?" Starscream had come out of the shadows behind Scalpel, Megatron having sent out a private summon to the seeker.

"Starscream you are to return to Earth and find this human." Using his eyes as projectors Megatron showed a driver's license picture of a young human female with red hair, brown eyes, and a cocky smile. The human's designation was Roxanne Glitch.

"I will join you on Earth once Scalpel has found a temporary cure for my condition. By the time I arrive you best have a secure location as well as the human Starscream. This is your last chance to redeem yourself." Megatron's optics darkened with the threat.

Bowing Starscream enquired," It shall be done Lord Megatron, however I will of course be requiring a few men to accompany me. The Autobots still watch for us, and it would be a shame for me to be off-lined before the mission has been completed."

"Very well, you may bring Cyclonis and Demolisher with you." Megatron knew Starscream's request was for more than just back up, Starscream probably planned to try and overthrow him by spouting nonsense to the soldiers. Unfortunately for him Cyclonis and Demolisher were so thick and unstable in mind that they were completely loyal.

Starscream bowed once more and left to collect the named soldiers, in his mind he began to put together a plan on how he could use this situation to his advantage.

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**J: Bet you didn't see that coming! xD**


	7. The Story of Roxanne Part Two

**J: This shall be another shortie since it's just a continuation of the same moment in the last chapter. Again I was very pleased with the reception I got, I received more reviews and more watchers, AND to add to that buzz my new buddy Ironaft30 has so sacrificed a portion of his time to recreate the cover art for this fanfic :3 It is so awesome my jaw hit the floor before I even maximized it! The link to see it is on my profile, and I will shortly be adding a coloured version of it :3**

**THANKS TO: Ultimateanime12 **(if anyone did like Agent Stone and Steep I would ask them to reread the chapters featuring them and ask them again xD) **supergirlprime **(That was my intention and I am pleased I have accomplished it :3) **LynxbyLynx **(Was not expecting a Decepticon fan to approve of this, not that I'm complaining. And yes, there will definitely be more Decepticon involvement in the future.)** psyconinja7 **(xD By age 8 Roxie stopped being surprised when bad things happened to her, especially after her science experiment caused the school to close down, but the others kids loved her for it lol.) **Ironaft30 **(Sorry, but Megs is out of range to get that kind of intersteller connection to that particular branch of ebay xD And as Scalpel told Megatron each bot has their own specific parts for their audio receptors.) **Sgt. Scruffy **(And I look forward to any future reviews, your screen name makes me smile when I see it above a review xD)

**DISCLAIMER: ME NO OWNEE TRANSFORMERS! ROXIE BELONGS TO ME!**

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Chapter Six – The Story of ****Roxanne ****Part 2**

When Roxanne had encountered Ratchet she had been totally comfortable because it was just him and Sarah was there with her. With three of the strange beings surrounding her with no one else Roxanne was feeling a little uncomfortable. Keeping her eyes on her hands Roxanne tried to ignore the varying stares that were on her, Ironhide's intense soul-reading stare was rather difficult to ignore.

As she did before talking to Sarah and Will she took a deep breathe and timidly asked," Where would you like me to start?"

"Wherever you think is a good start." This came from the beautiful woman that had come in with the two men. Looking up to meet her eyes Roxanne was entranced by their vibrant hue of blue, when those eyes flickered out of sight for a split second she remembered what exactly the beautiful woman was.

Nibbling on her lower lip Roxanne went through all her thoughts and decided the very beginning was best." Alright, well I knew you overheard me talking to Sarah and Will, so you heard about the faction that my dad worked for?" They nodded. " That faction was called Sector Seven. Because my dad was raising me mostly by himself he didn't want to leave me with a babysitter, so he would often sneak me into work with him. Part of my Dad's job was studying a certain subject. They called him NBE1." Holoforms, being the personification of the Autobots, showed the emotions of their owners. The expression of surprise and mild shock didn't go unnoticed by Roxanne. She had both explained her father's death and her knowing of their existence. Chromia and Ratchet's surprise changed to sympathy, Ironhide regained his scowl, only it seemed to radiate his hatred towards the topic of discussion.

"From your encounter with Megatron you learned of our existence, but how is it you knew we were the same as him?" Ratchet asked this after the silence had started to bother him.

Roxanne couldn't help but slightly smile," You may be the same species as him but you're no where near the same. Megatron's frequency is much more scratchy and disturbing than any of yours." She sighed at the looks of utter confusion her audience made at her explanation.

"Right, you have no idea what I'm talking about with frequencies Okay, let me put it this way. Just as everyone's voices are different, every one of your electronic frequencies is different, non of you sound anything like Earth electronics, but you each give off a different tone and feel to your frequencies. I believe it has to do with your sparks."

"How do you know of our spark?" Chromia was getting more and more baffled by Roxanne every time she opened her mouth.

"Megatron told me." Her answer was so simple in her mind, yet to the Autobots it still didn't make any sense.

"I doubt Megatron would tell you anything, and he couldn't have when he was being kept as a popsicle." Ironhide was slowly losing his patience, almost nothing the girl was saying was making sense anymore.

"Megatron didn't tell me, Megatron's spark told me. And before you ask I have no idea how his spark told me, I just listened when I was near him and I heard things. Some of them were simple, other times they were weird in a scary way. For example, his spark told me his name, what a spark is, and why he crashed into Earth. His spark also told me that Megatron wants to wear a crown and purple robe when he becomes absolute ruler of the universe. And that he wants the triplet femmes for a harem. That last one didn't make any sense to me until I got older, I'm pretty sure I shuddered for two minutes." At the mention of the triplets Ratchet and Ironhide looked over at Chromia to see she was about ready to go hunt down the disgusting mech just to rip his spark out.

Catching onto the look Roxanne inwardly cringed," Anyways...You three sound much nicer in comparison to Megatron." That did the trick of pulling the fuming woman away from thoughts of mutilating Megatron.

"How long have you known I wasn't a normal human vehicle?" Ironhide had wanted to ask more about Roxanne hearing things from Megatron but his other question would prevent the local forest from becoming Chromia's temporary training yard.

Crossing her arms with a wince to injured arm she answered thoughtfully," Let's see...I had my suspicions when I first met Sarah and Will. My hearing mufflers can block out most of your frequency but because you guys are nothing but electronics you're sound is much stronger than average electronics so some of it still gets through. That day I thought it was just because my batteries were low. When I came back to babysit and I still heard it I decided to just leave you alone since you were probably meant to be a secret. I had fun riding with you yesterday by the way Chromia. I was worried you wouldn't be easy to manoeuvre with you having your own mind and everything. I might have had better luck avoiding my accident this morning if it had still been you though." Chromia smiled at the excitement that had come into Roxanne's eyes when remembering the chase yesterday.

"I doubt that Roxanne, I let you have complete control and your driving was quite impressive." The praise was received well as Roxanne blushed with a smile. It was one thing to be told you were a good driver by a friend, it was a completely different thing when you heard it from the alien that you had actually driven.

Just as before silence was brought to the room when there came a knock on the door, it opened enough for Annabelle to put her head into the room and ask timidly," Uncle Ratchet, can I see Glitch now?"

"Yes, how inconsiderate of us to not let you see her earlier. We should be heading back to the base now anyways. It was a pleasure to meet you Roxanne, even if it was under ill circumstances." Ratchet's holoform didn't show it but the old medic always got a thrill in his spark when Annabelle called him 'Uncle Ratchet.'

As Annabelle went into the room and three adults moved to leave Roxanne asked," I will see you and Chromia again, won't I Ratchet?"

Chromia raised an eyebrow at Ratchet who had probably not been expecting the question. Turning back to the teen who was now holding Annabelle he replied," That decision lies with our leader Optimus Prime, I cannot guarantee anything but it is a possibility." Roxanne nodded to show she understood and watched Chromia and Ratchet continue downstairs, Ironhide chose to just disappear entirely causing Roxanne to blink several times.

"Are you okay Glitch?" Annabelle's question drew Roxanne's attention back down to the little bundle of joy that had come to check up on her.

"I'm okay, but a nice big hug would make me even better." She laughed when Annabelle squeezed her ribs in a hug that actually caused her to have a hard time breathing.

Releasing her Annabelle sat back and asked the question that had sent her running upstairs to begin with," Mommy says that you're sleeping over until you're all better, is that true?" Annabelle's eyes couldn't possibly grow any bigger with hope than they automatically did when she asked.

"Yes, I am going to be sleeping over, I don't know for how long though." Roxanne made sure to add on the uncertain time so Annabelle knew that it might only be for the weekend.

"Can I sleep with you tonight? We can eat marshmallows and tell stories! Pretty please with a cherry on top?" With each word Annabelle clung onto Roxanne's good arm tighter and tighter.

_'If I said no she would probably just sneak in after everyone else goes to bed. I swear I'm going to adopt her as my little sister one day, she's too damned cute!' _Ruffling Annabelle's hair Roxanne laughed," Sure, but you eat marshmallows when you go camping." Annabelle didn't seem to either hear or care about the marshmallow statement since she gave Roxanne another rib crushing hug then went running back downstairs to tell her parents that Glitch had said yes to letting her sleep with her.

Lowering herself down onto the pillows Roxanne studied the bland white ceiling while thinking, _'Maybe I should have told Ratchet, Chromia and Ironhide that other bit of information?...Nah, I doubt it matters.' _All of the mornings she had not slept in began to catch up with her, in a matter of seconds Roxanne fell into a deep dreamless sleep that her body had needed for years.

Downstairs Sarah was cleaning up after Annabelle's snack and Will was on the phone with his boss explaining the reason for his absence. Annabelle came barrelling down to the kitchen looking for all the world like she'd gotten five garbage bags filled with candy on Halloween (again.) Since her Daddy was on the phone Annabelle went straight to her Mom to excitedly whisper," Glitch said I can sleep with her tonight Mommy! Can I use my sleeping bag like I did when I slept over at Julie's?"

"I don't know, what if Roxie wants to cuddle with you?" Sarah meant it to be a joke but Annabelle took the question seriously. When she couldn't make up her mind Annabelle took off back upstairs only to come back down instantly.

"Mommy Glitch is taking a nap, and she's snoring." Annabelle laughed when Sarah coughed on her tea she'd just taken a sip of. Will finished his phone call just in time to catch that as well, not sure if Annabelle was telling the truth he quietly tiptoed upstairs and listened through a tiny crack in the door. Just as Annabelle said he heard very small snorts and snores.

Biting back his laughs he went to confirm his daughter's claim.

Outside Ironhide, Chromia and Ratchet stood in a circle discussing the information.

_**'Optimus will need to be informed of Roxanne's history.' **_Ratchet.

_** 'You are **__**not**__** telling him about Megatron's delusions.' **_Chromia

_** 'No, that information is insignificant. Roxanne's ability to hear us by our sparks is what he will find most interesting.' **_Ratchet.

_** 'Ugh. I just imagined what both sets of twins would do for fun with a human like her.' I**_ronhide.

_** '...The games of Hide n Seek would be endless. I don't think she should ever meet them.' **_Chromia.

_** 'That will be inevitable with her staying with the Lennox' until she recovers. Annabelle invited all the Autobots to her birthday next week.' **_Ratchet.

_** 'Well until then no other bots are to come near here, I already expect that human femme to cause trouble without the others coming to meet her the first chance they get.' **_Ironhide_**.**_

_** 'Right, those government officials. Hopefully Will can pull strings that will cease their pursuit.' **_Chromia.

_** 'Do not worry, I can chase away those pesky humans before they even get close to the house.' **_Ironhide accompanied by the whine of his cannons.

_** 'I doubt that will be necessary Ironhide. Sarah seemed absolute in her declaration of protection.'. **_Ratchet

_** 'Optimus to Ratchet and Chromia. You are to report back to base for transport back to Diego Garcia.' **_Optimus.

_** 'Yes,sir.' **_Ratchet and Chromia.

_** 'Keep me updated on Roxanne's condition Ironhide, I want a report once every day until the party. I have a few wrenches back in my med bay with your name on it if I don't hear anything.' **_Ratchet before changing to his alt mode and speeding off.

_**'One of these days I'm going to hide or destroy all of those wrenches.' **_Ironhide.

_**'Sunstreaker and Sideswipe already attempted that remember? Ratchet just threw everything else at them instead.' **_Chromia

_**'Just a thought.' **_Ironhide.

_**'So, when do you want to pay up on that date you owe me?' **_Chromia.

_**'Um...You can decide those details.' **_Ironhide.

_**'Very well, you'll hear from me before long. I would also like a report every once in a while on Roxanne, I like her and think we could be friends. See you 'Hide.' **_Chromia along with a wink then going off after Ratchet.

Ironhide watched the femme until he had to resort to tracking her signal. With a sigh he changed down to his alt mode and went back to the garage for a good recharge. That day had just been too much for his old battle worn processor to handle in one dose.


	8. Day At The Beach

**J: Hello all my beautiful readers and reviewers! As you can see you get to read a nice lengthy chapter today! But before I let you be on your merry way you first must promise to check out the fan-art done by Ironaft30! There should be a total of four links, four done by him and one done by me! The new one done by me is in fact a little comic moment just for this chapter! My drawing will however look horrible in comparison to Ironaft30's so do me a favour and look at mine first xD**

**THANKS TO: Supergirlprime, lilyou22, Jazzi Flynn, LynxbyLynx, ultimateanime12,ironaft30, Sgt. Scruffy, Psyconinja7, lightwolfheart, standout4christ, and vampire girl Alex! LOVE YOU ALL AND SORRY FOR NOT PERSONALLY COMMENTING ON YOUR REVIEWS!**

**Disclaimer: Me no ownee! Only Roxie! No touchee!  
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Chapter Seven – Day At The Beach**

'Knock' 'knock' "Roxie? Annabelle? You girls awake yet?" Sarah opened the door to peak into the guest bedroom and immediately wished she had a camera. As Sarah had suggested to Annabelle yesterday Roxie had indeed let Annabelle sleep with her in the bed.

Annabelle had curled up on Roxie's left side with her head resting on Roxie's chest. Roxie in turn had her good arm around the little girl's shoulders in an almost protective half embrace. Remembering that she had her cell phone Sarah pulled it out and quickly took a couple of pictures, sending the best of the two to her mom, Will's parents and one even to Robert Epps' wife Louis. Tucking away the phone she went to the bed and gently shook Annabelle," Come on sleepy heads, if you don't get up we can't go to the beach."

"Beach? We're going to the beach today? YAAY!" Almost as if someone had hit the 'on' switch on the little girl Annabelle sat up straight, jumped off the bed then went running to her room to find her bathing suit.

Woken up from Annabelle's cries of joy and the loss of her cuddle buddy Roxie sat up rubbing her eyes," She's a better alarm clock then the one I made for science project. Good morning Sarah."

"Good morning Roxie, how did you sleep?" Sarah went to the window and pulled back the curtains, allowing sunlight to flood the room and temporarily blind Roxie.

"The best in years, having Annabelle for a cuddle buddy made it even better. Can she sleep with me for the rest of my life? I promise to take her to school and everything." The joke was met by an amused look Sarah gave her before going over to help her out of bed. The night before they had worked out a system where Roxie could put enough weight on her bad leg to keep her balanced while Sarah would help her down the stairs by going down a step ahead and in a way letting Roxie hop down next to her.

When they got to the kitchen Roxie couldn't stop herself from wolf whistling, Will was sitting shirtless at the table in his swimming trunks reading the morning newspaper. Will looked up and smiled smugly, he knew from Sarah's constant praise that his army abs were indeed attractive, hearing the approval from a younger female only boosted his ego to the point of a swelled head. Taking a seat at the table next to Will Roxie told him," Joey went to the gym every day back in high school and never looked anywhere near that ripped."

"Please stop before I never hear the end of it. What would you like for breakfast?" Sarah gently pushed her husband to try and remove his cocky smile, but Will only smiled bigger.

"Do you have any Lucky Charms left? I spotted the box last night and have been craving it since." Roxie beamed when Sarah pulled out the brand new box of cereal and poured her a bowl.

"Think you'd be able to handle a day at the beach Roxie? I understand if you want to stay here." Will watched Roxie's expressions go from content with a mouthful of Lucky Charms to questioning.

She swallowed her mouthful and told him," I haven't been to the beach in years, it's beautiful outside, and I would be left defenceless if the goons show up. No way am I letting some road rash and scrapes stop me from going to the beach. I even grabbed my..." Sarah and Will watched with some concern when Roxie stopped mid-sentence and abruptly slammed her head on the table.

Taking a guess Sarah asked," You grabbed your bathing suit but?"

"But in my rush to get away from the goons I left my bag at my house! I want to go but it looks like I'll have to go in my clothes from yesterday. I was going to cut those pants into shorts anyways, my accident just saved me some work." Roxie groaned and mumbled all this while she kept her face smooshed on the table surface.

Going over to the troubled teen Sarah pat her on the back and supplied a better solution," Or you could use this week and next week's pay to buy a new swim suit and some new clothes to last your stay with us?" With little to no warning Roxie jumped out of her seat and grabbed Sarah around the waist in an overly enthusiastic hug while at the same time saying," Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you!" She let go, shovelled the remainder of her cereal, gulped down the milk then zipped upstairs all in the matter of almost a minute.

Putting down the paper Will mumbled in disbelief," She just did four things faster than it takes my men to get suited up for a 'con pursuit. Tell me the secret to female speed so I can force it into my men." Will had been semi-serious while asking this of Sarah, who rolled her eyes and left to see if Annabelle wanted to go shopping with them.

Since Annabelle said yes to going it meant Ironhide had to drive them (majority guarding.) Will didn't envy the poor weapon specialist, shopping with any female could take hours, the only relief Ironhide could grasp at is the need to leave for the beach shortly after noon. While they were in town Will promised to get everything ready for the beach.

On the ride into the city Ironhide felt Roxanne's heart rate begin to accelerate and her stress levels began to sky rocket. Having a hunch as to what was causing this reaction Ironhide informed her through the radio," You have no need for concern of being discovered Roxanne. If those pathetic men come within my sensor range I will inform Sarah before they can even get close."

Roxie was a little taken back when Ironhide had spoken through the speakers, she'd forgotten that the hardened holographic man she had encountered yesterday was actually the truck she sat in. Smiling from the reassurance Roxie thanked him," I trust your word o that Ironhide, it's just kind of reflex for me to tense up when I'm on the road. I'll calm down once we get into the city and I'm on my feet."

"Don't worry Glitch, if the bad men try and take you away Mommy will put them in time out and Ironhide will make them go BOOM!" The mental imagery of Annabelle's reassurance got Roxie laughing good and hard. Sarah smiled back at her daughter from the rear view mirror.

When they got into the city Roxie slumped down in her seat and constantly twitched when they passed any police cruisers. Sarah took the quickest route to the mall and found a parking spot close to the doors. Roxie only full relaxed when they stepped into the building. Their first stop was a swimsuit store, after Roxie got the total amount of her pay added up she felt she deserved two bathing suits. A red and black stripped one piece to replace her old one, and a neon green and black star covered bikini set. Annabelle got a new High School Musical one piece since she was starting to out grow the one she'd gotten last year. Sarah even got up enough bravado to buy a rather sexy blue two piece bikini, she told Roxie that Will needed to be reminded he wasn't the only one that can get compliments from a younger audience.

Next came the clothes stores, with the money Roxie had left over she purchased a used leather jacket, three new sets of jeans, and six new shirts, her favourite one depicting a little robot telling a bigger robot that it had something bigger then the bigger robot. The bigger robot asks what and on the back it shows a big metal heart with the words, 'I have a heart so big it barely fits this human shirt.' Annabelle loved the shirt so much Sarah bought one in her size, Roxie told Annabelle they should try and trick Ironhide with the shirts one day, and Annabelle nodded in agreement.

The whole shopping trip took an hour and a half, during which time Ironhide had taken a small recharge nap to have more energy for the duration of the day. He remembered from their last trip to the beach that he had fallen into recharge as soon as they'd gotten back to the house.

Sarah was pleased to return to the house and find a cooler, a duffel bag, a sun umbrella, a beach ball, and the inflatable mattress piled neatly on the front porch. Will had done exactly as he'd said and gotten everything ready. Will came out of the house with towels in his hands and sunglasses on his head. Roxie laughed outright when she looked closer and saw that he had sunscreen on his nose. Since Annabelle and Roxie had most of the bags Sarah went to help Will get all the stuff in Ironhide's trunk. "How was she in town Sarah?" Will asked this knowing the damage certain stressful situations could cause on an innocent mind.

"She was alright once we got off the roads and inside the mall, there and back she couldn't relax." Sarah kept her voice low in case the girls came back out faster than expected.

Throwing the inflatable mattress in then covering it with the towels and the cooler Will asked Ironhide," We can only get to our usual beach by going through the city, we asked Roxie to stay with us so she could actually relax. Can you find another beach we can get to without going near or through the city Ironhide?"

Ironhide didn't say anything right away, when Roxie and Annabelle came back out in their new swim suits he responded," I've located an approachable water shore, in comparison to the previous beach's location the drive will last 20 Earth minutes longer."

"That's fine Ironhide, thanks. Alright ladies, let's load up and move out!" Will gave Ironhide's side a grateful pat then hopped into the driver seat while Roxie climbed in, followed by Annabelle buckling in her car seat, and Sarah getting into the passenger seat.

All the windows rolled down, music blaring full blast Ironhide took off at top speed down the country road. The rush of air, the sound of Annabelle's laughter and Roxie's sense ease triggered something in the back of her mind. Everything around her dimmed and a memory she'd barely thought of before came foward.

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_"Roxie! Roxie! Where are you going?" A man's gentle voice came from behind her, in front of her stretched the endless woods._

_ Running as fast as she could with her short little legs Roxie called back over her shoulder," No! I'm not telling you! You can't make me go back! I don't like those doctors!" The thought of the horrible doctors doing more tests, cutting and shaving ore hair made her little heart beat faster and her little legs moved quicker._

_ In her blue overalls, Winnie the Pooh shirt, and Power Ranger sneakers Roxie was moving freely around and over the large tree roots. A random turn left, then right and she's falling. A short drop down into a little ditch, her wrist was sore and slowly beginning to hurt more. Tears building in her eyes Roxie sniffled," Daddy? Daddy?...Daddy I'm hurt! DADDY! PLEASE I'M SORRY!"_

_ "Roxie? Roxie! Oh sweetie! Did you hurt yourself again? Come here sweetie." A man with an enlonged face, short shaggy light brown hair and deep brown eyes crouched down to scoop up his six year old baby girl. She once had lovely light brown hair just like his only longer, now it was little more than two pony tails on the back of her head, the rest had been shaved off completely for more accurate cranial scans._

_ Cradling the little girl and rubbing her back he whispered,"It's okay sweetie, I'm sorry if I scared you. There's going to be no more doctors, no more tests, no more hair cutting. I got a new job and my bosses are going to protect us."_

_ Using the hand that wasn't hurting Roxie wiped away some of her tears to look clearly into her father's eyes, there wasn't a single sign of dishonesty she could see. Cuddling into her father's embrace Roxie whispered," Can you tell your bosses that I say thank you?"_

_ Th e sound of laughter matched the vibrations Roxie felt the column of warmth that held her," Yes, of course. And guess who works with me?"_

_ "Who?" Roxie was curious but the running she had done and the strong ache in her wrist slowly made Roxie fall asleep, never hearing the answer, only the fading whispers of trees, birds and insects._

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"Mommy, I think Glitch broke." Annabelle had asked Roxie a question, instead of a reply Roxie had continued to stare out the window without blinking.

Turning around in her seat Sarah saw the softened features and glazed over eyes, _'Wonder what she's thinking about.' _"Roxie? Roxie, are you okay hun?"

Blinking a couple of times to clear her mind of the memory Roxie looked over at Sarah and saw concern in the older woman's eyes. Laughing awkwardly, she apologized," Sorry, just remembered something from when I was close to Annabelle's age. Did you ask me something Annabelle?"

"Yea, will you help me build a huge sand castle? Mommy and Daddy aren't very good at it, and Ironhide can't help me." The question made Roxie snicker as Sarah turned back around in her seat with a 'hmph' as if she was an insulted five year old.

Since he needed to keep up the appearance of driving Will mumbled loudly," I'm trained to defend my country from other countries and Decepticons. I was not trained to build sand castles."

"Don't worry Annabelle, I'm not good at a lot of things, but sand castles are no problem for me." To prove her confidence she stuck out her chest and beat her fist against it, only to wince since she'd used her bad arm.

"Can you go swimming Glitch? Your bandaids don't look water proof like my High School Musical bandaids." Annabelle had caught the wince and had asked out of curiosity more than concern. She knew Glitch was okay and would get all better with her bandaids on.

"Roxanne will not be joining you in the water Annabelle. Those bandages are not water proof and the water is filled with salt and other unsanitary elements. The Hatchet would dent my helm enough times to put me into stasis lock if I allowed you to get your wounds infected." Ironhide's answer made Roxie frown and fight back the urge to argue. She'd been taking care of herself for almost five years and after one little accident she had a massive robot telling her how to take care of herself.

All thoughts of growling at the sentient truck ceased from two things happening at the same time. First the beach came into view through a gap in the surrounding forest. A perfect little hidden area of beach with untouched sand, glistening water with minimal waves and even a couple of seagulls to complete the beach scene.

At the same time Roxie clamped her eyes on the beach Ironhide did a scan over Roxie. The scan did not go unnoticed, for even with her hearing mufflers on Roxie still heard it happen. Clapping her hands over her ears she hissed at the radio that represented Ironhide while she was inside him," Could you please give me some warning? Ratchet even had enough courtesy to warn me yesterday before he scanned me! That sound is horrible!"

Curiosity winning over the need to keep up the charade of driving Will turned around in his seat to ask," You can hear them scan you? I can slightly feel it but I can never hear it."

"You're lucky you can't, as short as it lasts for I can still hear it. It sounds like someone rubbing a fork and knife on a plate really fast, and that's after its filtered through my mufflers." Roxie shook her head and focused on the song currently playing to try and remove the last of the sound from her mind.

"Well get use to it or learn to run really fast. I have orders from the Hatchet to send a scan report every day until Annabelle's birthday party next week. And when he shows up the first thing he will do is scan yo three times over, you have my words as an Autobot that that is what will happen." Ironhide told her this until they came to a stop by the beach and opened his door to let the family out. Much to their surprise he then changed over to his bi-pedal mode.

Walking down to the water he told them," Sensors indicate this area is unpopulated. I will have plenty of time to change down if other humans approach. What?" The question was directed to Roxie who stood wide eyed and partially slack jawed.

"Oh sorry. This is my first time seeing you like this. It's been years since I saw Megatron, I forgot how huge you guys really are." As Roxie talked she slowly recovered from the initial shock and began to smile up at him. Seeing her relax Ironhide had to agree with Will and Sarah, Roxanne was a person meant to smile, anything else didn't look proper on her face.

"Glitch come on! I want to collect sea shells!" Annabelle took hold of Roxie's arm and pulled her towards the beach.

"If you're going to stay in that form you should go over behind the trees, just to be a little more safe." Will gave Ironhide this advice and went down to the sandy shore along with Sarah, both of their hands full of the beach stuff Ironhide had dropped on the ground when he transformed.

Ironhide did as he was advised and made himself comfortable behind the protection of the trees, so if anyone did drive by they wouldn't see him unless they looked for him. From his position he was able to see everything his family was doing. Will and Sarah had set up the sun umbrella and towels to sit on, and Roxie was helping Annabelle collect all the big shells they could find. Everything was peaceful and the view of the ocean was easy on the optics.

Retrieving the scan he had done he sent it along to Ratchet and made himself more comfortable by partially leaning against the trees.

_**'It seems she is recovering well, a little more hydration wouldn't hurt...Odd, I didn't catch that when I scanned her yesterday.' **_Ratchet sometimes forgets to turn off his communicator when reading things over. Ironhide hated it when he did that, especially when it ruined quiet moments.

_**'What didn't you catch?' **_Ironhide asked knowing that Ratchet always enjoyed discussing things whenever he could, as well it wasn't every day that the Hatchet missed something in a scan over.

Ratchet sent a more focused copy of Roxie's scan back to Ironhide, what he had missed was a skin imperfection. To be more precise there was a scar that started at Roxie's hair line and descended at an angle and stopped halfway through her eyebrow. As soldiers of a long running civil war both bots recognized it as a mark of battle. _**'See if you can get information on that, if it's another wound from the human government I'm going to send Chromia after their afts with one of my wrenches.'**_

_** 'If it was caused by the government she would have mentioned it to Will and Sarah yesterday.' **_Ironhide muttered this back to Ratchet but still moved to comply.

The girls had just dropped all their findings on one of the beach towels when Ironhide reached them," Look Ironhide, Roxie found a perfect hermit crab shell." Annabelle held up the crab shell and Ironhide scrunched up his face. A memory that Will, Sarah and Annabelle shared was that a couple of hermit crabs had gotten under Ironhide's armour and caused the weapons specialist to dance around like a child with ants in his pants.

"That will only come back with us if you are 100 percent certain that it is empty. Roxanne, Ratchet wishes to know what happened that left that scar upon your forehead." Ironhide guessed that the scar wasn't mean to come to attention when Roxie went rigid while pulling a bottle of water out of the cooler.

Sighing Roxie told the mech and the very attentive adults," Before you jump to conclusions, no the government didn't give it to me. I got it in a cat fight back in high school."

"Cat fight? How did you get such damage from a small animal?" Ironhide's question and pure confusion was badly timed, Roxie had taken a drink after telling them what had happened.

Spluttering and coughing Roxie laughed," N-no! A cat fight 'cough,cough' is when two girls fight each other 'cough' with just their hands. I got the scar from my opponents finger nail."

"Can I see? I've only heard of finger nail scars." Sarah surprised Will with the question, especially since he was just about to ask the same thing.

Roxie shrugged and pulled back her bangs on the right side of her face. Where the scar ended in her eyebrow there was no hair letting it show distinctly. In a low voice Will asked," If you got a scar what did the other girl get?"

Putting her bangs back down Roxie looked down at her hands and mumbled," Actually, I lost the fight. I only gave her a black eye and a bloody nose. I got this, a black eye and a split lip, as well as a bunch of other bruises. My ego and reputation was tattered for months, no thanks to a witness recording the fight and posting it on youtube." The memory of her humiliating defeat got Roxie to cover her scar then flop onto her back to glare at the sun.

"Was that your first and final battle?" Ironhide's question got Roxie to sit up and look at the mech who seemed to be regarding her with a strange look on his face.

"Well...I don't like to brag, but I beat her boyfriend senseless two weeks later, then two of his friends the week after that. They were all muscle bundled football players too." Roxie had to turn her face back down to hide the smug smile that had started to spread when remembering those victories.

"Then your first battle was training, those that followed after were the true battles. Your scar is a certification that you completed your training." Ironhide had given this speech to each set of twins and Bumblebee, he never thought he would deliver this speech to a human, much less a human civilian. Yet the circumstances were the same just as they had been for the younger mechs that had needed the pep talk.

Getting to her feet Roxie fondly told the alien giant," Thanks Ironhide. I'll keep that in mind. Now where did Annabelle get to, we have a sand castle to build!" Giving a fist pump Roxie took off for the little girl that was standing with her feet in the water picking up more shells.

Smiling wide at his friend Will asked," You're a big softy for kids aren't you Ironhide?" His only response was a snort and Ironhide going back to the spot he had sat in before. Shaking his head Will went about rubbing sunscreen on Sarah's back while telling her that her new bathing suit made her look like the Ocean Goddess.

Two hours passed with Roxie and the Lennox family doing various beach activities from sand castles to valley ball. A one point Sarah, Will and Annabelle went into the water to play around. Being a good recovering patient Roxie didn't join them but instead went and sun bathed on Ironhide's leg. He'd grumbled a little but didn't outright protest. When she got off to eat the snack that was brought she winked and ran away, it wasn't until she was a good distance away that Ironhide saw the greasy imprint from her body where she'd been laying, he hadn't seen her apply an unnecessary amount of sunscreen before climbing onto him. _'If she thinks she will get away with this she has another thing coming. If I were either set of twins what would I do in retaliation?...Primus help me if they ever learn of my trying to think like them, Sunstreaker has a big enough ego as it is.' _His counter attack decided Ironhide just had to wait for the perfect moment.

The moment presented itself when Will took out the camera to start taking pictures. First Roxie took pictures of the Lennox family, then seperate pictures of Annabelle with each parent. After those Will and Sarah had ordered Roxie to get in on the pictures. Unable to refuse the family that was treating her like one of the Lennox' she used her biggest brightest smiles for her pictures with Sarah and Annabelle. She even got a picture taken with Will where they were both in ridiculous karate poses. When it changed to just Roxie and Annabelle Ironhide went into action.

He changed down into his alt mode and backed up so he stood about a foot away from Roxie. Annabelle smiled at the truck and asked," Did you want in too?"

"No, just making the next one better." His reply made Roxie turn to Annabelle for an explanation.

Annabelle shrugged only to notice Ironhide's tires starting to spin in place, pointing she tried to warn Roxie,"Um...Glitch?...Ironhide is-" 'FWOOSH!' A massive wave of sand covered Roxie head to toe, because of the sunscreen most of it stuck to her skin.

A second passed in silence until Annabelle began to laugh so hard she fell to the ground holding her stomach with tears in her eyes. Will let out a few chuckles of his own so he could hold the camera steady when he took five pictures of Roxie's unimpressed face. Sarah joined her daughter in a full out laughing spree, and Ironhide just smiled proudly at his handiwork and took a couple of pictures to show the twins. Next time they told him he wasn't a fun bot he had proof to show them otherwise.

"You look like a sand monster Glitch." Annabelle recovered from her laughing fit to poke Roxie and watch the sand fall off of her, but her skin still wasn't visible.

Changing her voice to sound low and evil Roxie put her hands above her head like claws she growled out," Sand monster wants to eat Annabelle. RAWR!" Annabelle took off running with a giggle and fake screams, Roxie followed after her in slow stomping motions. Will took more pictures of the chase until Roxie dropped the stomping motions and full out ran after Annabelle.

Ironhide, back in his bi-pedal mode, raised an optic ridge at Sarah who had looked at him then broke out in more laughter. Seeing that he was confused she explained," You do remember that you're driving us home right? Roxie is covered in sand and will be siting in your interior."

Realization had Ironhide cursing in Cybertronian until he ran out of curses. By succeeding in his prank Ironhide had successfully screwed himself over. "She will not be coming anywhere near my interior until she is clean."

"That's going to be quite difficult if she can't go in the water." Sarah had seen the longing looks Roxie had given the water when they had gone swimming earlier. They would be leaving shortly and it would be such a shame if the girl couldn't go in the water at least once.

Ironhide crossed his arms and looked down at the cunning woman. It was so infuriating when she could get the upper hand on him. He didn't say anything but lumbered over to Roxie, picked her up much to her protest, and dropped her in the water. When she resurfaced with a huge smile she asked," Change of spark big guy?"

"No, you will remain in the water until all traces of sand are removed from your person. Ratchet will not learn of this and you are to disinfect your wounds and change your bandages the moment we return to the Lennox property." Ironhide wasn't sure if the teen heard him or not, she had started swimming around on her back and diving underwater in the middle of his instructions.

Waving a lazy hand Roxie reassured the mother hen bot," Yes, yes. I will thoroughly purify myself once we get back and I am not to tell Ratchet so he does not maim you in some way or other for allowing me to come in contact with infectious water." Roxie deliberately made it sound silly so Ironhide knew that that was what he had just told her. Holding back his urge to kick a wave at her Ironhide stomped back to Will, Sarah and Annabelle who were beginning to pack up.

Roxie stayed in the water until she knew that most of the sand was gone from her skin. Ironhide would have to tolerate the small amount of sand that would fall out of her hair, as well as the usual amount of sand that sticks to everyone's feet when they go to the beach and get wet.

Trudging out of the water Roxie heard Will say to Ironhide," This place is great, when we get everything put away could you show me on a map where this is? It's really rare for a place like this not to be owned by someone else already."

"Isn't this where you usually go to?" Mech and man looked over at Roxie who was standing a couple feet away drying her hair with a towel and wrapping another one around her body so she didn't get water on the seats.

"Actually no, we just decided that somewhere different would be better this time." _'Since you don't like going through the city.' _was there but not said.

"Thanks." The gratitude was felt from that one word and Will and Ironhide relished in the feeling. Both hoped that the feeling lasted and that Roxie remained as care free as she was at that point in time.

There was no music for the drive home, the windows were rolled down only halfway and Ironhide did his best to keep the ride smooth.

10 minutes down the road and the two back seat passengers were out cold leaning against each other. Sarah got out the camera and took a few pictures, it seemed that alone each girl had a cute and spunky charm, together they made anyone want to stop and go "awwww," That didn't apply to Ironhide though, instead of thinking how cute they were he was thinking about how to wake Roxie up without disturbing Annabelle so she would do as she said she would. In the end he just let Sarah wake her up and help her back inside with Annabelle.

Despite the fresh amount of sand that was going to take months to get rid of Ironhide decided that the beach day had been worth while to see two happy little girls.


	9. Making it Known

**J: Alrighty who's ready for some action? But because I got so excited about where this would advance the plot to the action won't be the best, so sorry to all of you action lovers. And because this is actually getting to be quite the serious story I'm stuck on whether or not to change the genres, what say you? I HAVE OVER 50 REVIEWS NOW! LOOOOVE YOU GUYS! TELL YOUR FRIENDS!  
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**THANKS TO: Ironhide and Lennox **(Heh, I try my best :3 And...you and another reviewer said the same thing about Roxie's reactions "suspicious.) **Tailsdoll123 **( Thank you! It's what I am for and I hope you continue to enjoy reading.) **Latina Shewolf **(You and Ironhide and Lennox said more or less the same thing! Do you two know each other "suspicious." And it's okay, as long as you review every once in a while I am happy :D And this chapter pretty much bursts that idea lol.) **Lightwolfheart **( Thank youz, and "grump".) **Ironaft30 **( Sarah is a mother, so of course she will want to protect Roxie to the best of her abilities.) **Psyconinja7 **(I agree, all work and no play makes the readers think I'm a grumpy writer xD And I felt that even though Ironhide makes an awesome big brother figure, a girl still needs another femme to play with while mother is busy :3) **Transformers123124 **(Looks like you didn't have to wait long right? :) Sorry to say the cuteness will be cut back a bit. Hope you still enjoy!)

**Disclaimer: I do not own Transformers, I do own Roxie and those that shall try and use her without permission shall suffer the wrath that is an angry me! RAWWR!**

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Chapter Eight – Making It Known**

Two more days of leisurely activities followed the beach trip, though Will went to a meeting on Monday it had ended very well for his side, so in celebration made barbequed shishkebobs, a rare treat at the Lennox farm.

Tuesday morning met Roxie much the same as Monday. Annabelle woke up bright and early at 7am thus causing Roxie to wake up not long after, going downstairs Sarah and Annabelle welcomed her with smiles and chipper attitudes that didn't seem normal so early in the morning. The pattern changed during breakfast, when Annabelle left to go get dressed Sarah handed Roxie a sticky note that read, ' This afternoon I'm going into town to pick up Annabelle's birthday present, if you want to come along and get a gift for Annabelle as well let Sarah know so she can text me.' Figuring that the note was meant to prevent a certain five year old from getting overly excited Roxie gave Sarah a nod of the head in response.

"Do you think it would be safe for you to return to your house and collect more things?" Sarah knew this was a sore topic but Roxie would have to go back to her house eventually and Sarah believed it would be best if she went with Will and Ironhide.

Roxie had a bit of a frown when she replied," After assaulting Agent Stone I doubt it will ever be safe to go back there. I can send Drake there to pick up all the important things I need, like my battery recharger for my hearing mufflers, everything else I don't know what to do with. I guess what it comes down to is that that house will have to be sold."

"I'm sorry Roxie. If there's anything we can do to help, let me or Will know, okay?" As Roxie had talked more to herself than Sarah the frown had deepened, Sarah sat down next to Roxie and held her in another hug.

"Glitch! Let's wear our matching shirts!" Annabelle came back downstairs wearing her shirt already as well as a pair of well used overalls. Seeing her mom hugging Roxie Annabelle ran over and hugged her friend as well. Smiling Roxie welcomed the warmth and comfort that she knew couldn't last forever. Nothing perfect such as the happiness she felt could last, it was some kind of universal law.

Once the group hug finished things went back to the pattern. Roxie finished her breakfast, got dressed and joined Annabelle outside to play under the watchful eye of Ironhide while Sarah did some cleaning indoors. Will returned from his morning run, cleaned up and got to work on the outdoor chores. Due to time zone difference his meeting for that day was scheduled for the evening.

For lunch Roxie treated the Lennox family to her family's one of the kind Sloppy Joe mixture, the main difference being that the meat and sauce were eaten in a hot dog bun instead of a hamburger bun. After Annabelle approved of it the adults tried it and agreed that it put original Sloppy Joe to shame. With much cajoling and pestering, and pair of puppy dog eyes from Annabelle Roxie agreed to give Sarah the recipe.

Roxie and Annabelle were lying outside on the grass blowing bubbles and pointing out cloud shapes when Will went to find Roxie. "That one looks like a balloon." Annabelle pointed and Roxie agreed.

"That one looks like...a goofy soldier that is probably here to let me know it's time to go." Will had deliberately put his head in Roxie's view of the sky to see what she would say.

"I am anything but a goofy soldier young lady, and you are correct in your guess. Time to go." Will offered a hand and pulled Roxie to her feet when she took hold of it.

"Go? Go where? Are you leaving us to live somewhere else Glitch?" Annabelle took hold of Roxie's leg and held tight, her eyes big and pleading.

"No Annabelle, your dad and I just need to do some errands. When he comes homes I'm going to be with him too." Roxie hugged Annabelle while telling her this so they were on the same eye level. Annabelle relaxed, returned the hug then went back to blowing bubbles.

The ride into town was just as stressful for Roxie as it was the day they went shopping. Will didn't give reassurances but made a promise that he would keep himself between her and the agents if the situation called for it.

Roxie didn't know what Will was getting Annabelle for her birthday, but she certainly didn't expect him to get her a customized black bicycle with pink streamers on the handle bars and one blue, and one red training wheel. No one but Will knew why the red headed teen fell to the floor in a fit of hysterics," Wonder how Ironhide is going to take having a Mini Me," Will and Roxie decided that no matter what Annabelle called the bike, they were forever going to call it Mini 'Hide.

"So if you got Annabelle a bike, what did Sarah get her?" Roxie was going through her memory of things Annabelle had liked, a few things came to mind but she waned to make sure she didn't get the same thing that Sarah got her.

Smiling as they rolled the boxed up bike to Ironhide replied," Sarah managed to talk Optimus into letting her get a custom made bracelet with the Autobot insignia as the main charm. Ratchet and Jolt have it right now, they're making it into a tracking device as well as a health monitor. I tell you, Annabelle is going to have the most advanced gadgets on and around her before she reaches the age of 10. Lord knows what kind of stuff she'll get in her teens."

A crooked smirk came onto Roxie's face as she thought, _' Thank you for deciding on my gift for Annabelle. I have to make sure to tell her it will be a while before I can give it to her though. I'll talk to Ironhide about it tonight after supper.' _Will didn't ask about the crooked smirk and instead asked her," When's your birthday Roxie?"

"Officially I was born July 13th, but Roxanne Glitch's birth certificate says she was born on Halloween night." Her answer got a stupefied look from Will.

"How did you get a completely different birth certificate for a last name change?" Getting your last name changed is easy, so is getting a birth certificate when the original got too old or ruined. Getting a birth certificate to match your changed last name that added a bogus day of birth was just outrageous!

A devious face on Roxie casually answered," When you know and have favours with all the right people something like that is really easy to get done." Will's expression betrayed his thoughts, he was thinking she had underworld connections.

Rolling her eyes she reassured the army man," Not those kind of people William. For example, do you know who John Robertson is?"

"Yea, he was the last mayor for this place...John Robertson owes you a favour?" By this point Will wasn't even bothering to walk anymore.

Roxie continued to walk with the box but still called over her shoulder," He owes me three and his ex-wife owes me one as well. Now come on before Ironhide's overactive imagination makes him come and hunt us down."

Running a hand through his hair Will could only think, _'She's 19 and has favours from people like a retired mayor? What has this girl been doing all her life?' _That question would give Will headaches for the next few months from trying to answer it.

Ironhide was parked well away from other people so when Roxie and Will approached he was able to complain out loud in a semi-quiet volume," It's about time. What took you so long? Did you stop and recharge on the way?" Even in the city Ironhide considered it out in the open and his charges vulnerable to Decepticon attacks.

"Don't get your super sized panties in a twist you old codger. Will just wanted to get to know me better so we went at a leisurely pace. Hold still while we load Annabelle's gift into the back. Do you know what it is by the way?" Roxie got much amusement out of Ironhide's grouchy insults and felt it only right to respond in a similar way.

Ironhide lowered his tail gate to let Will and Roxie load the box in the back, when they got in the cab he replied through the radio," No, Will said it would be a surprise for me as well. Why do you ask?" Ironhide was suspicious, he could see Will and Roxie smiling widely at each other and Roxie looked like she was trying not to laugh.

Her voice somewhat strangled from her restrained giggles she merely told him," No reason. I just can't wait for the party." Will laughed shortly so Ironhide wouldn't get even more suspicious.

Out of the city and in the rural country they had the windows down and insanely loud AC/DC music blasting through the speakers. Will and Optimus Prime were the only ones that knew that Ironhide loved the human music, especially the kind called rock 'n roll. Completely at ease once more Roxie sang along with Will and Ironhide (yes Ironhide was actually singing along, he made Roxie swear on her honour that she wouldn't tell anyone else. That and he showed her the picture of her with the fairy wings. Needless to say Will go a punch on the arm when he wouldn't stop laughing.) In the middle of the chorus for '_Highway To Hell' _Roxie stopped singing. Her face scrunched up in concentration until she was practically squinting. Without warning she reached over and turned the volume off. "What did you do that for?"

"Shh! I think I hear a helicopter." Roxie said this in a harsh whisper then stuck her head out the window. She was half way out the window when she finally spotted the little black dot. At the same time the little black dot spotted her.

Cyclonus had been sent out to start searching the areas the squishy femme was reported to occupy. He'd hovered over her shelter for an hour until he got bored and started doing circles around the city. Out of sheer luck (he called it his incredible skills) he'd caught a glimpse of her just as she entered a building called the mall. To stay undetected he'd ascended until he was covered by the clouds. He felt cheated of his good luck when Cyclonus saw that his target wasn't only accompanied by the human that lead the squishies allied to the Autobots, but they were both being protected by the Autobot weapon specialist Ironhide, the Autobot that could be considered more trigger happy than himself.

_**'Cyclonus to Starscream. We've got a problem!'**_

_** 'It better be a good problem for you to be complaining about.'**_

_** 'I found the squishy Megatron wants, but she's with Ironhide. What should I do? If I go anywhere near them I'll be turned into scrap metal!'**_

_** 'I wouldn't care if it was Optimus Prime protecting the target! Your orders are to locate and capture. At least try before you come whining like the pathetic pile of slag you are. If you come back unscathed I will know you did not try Cyclonus. Starscream out.' **_Starscream's promise of punishment made Cyclonus growl about undeserving leadership.

Trailing behind Ironhide Cyclonus decided that he would try a sneak attack and make a swoop for the squishy once Ironhide dropped her to fight back. If his first swoop missed he'd stick around long enough to scare the squishies senseless, take some minor damage then put as much distance between them as possible. What no one had bothered to tell Cyclonus was that the target had super sensitive hearing. When the target put her head out the window and stared straight at him he knew he was slagged on his plan. "Oh well, guess I'll just have a little fun. HERE I COME SQUISHY!" Going full speed Cyclonus started a barrage of bullets that went down the road towards Ironhide's rear.

"It's shooting at us! Why is it shooting at us? IT'S A NEWS HELICOPTER! THEY DON'T EVEN COME WITH GUNS!" Going back into the cab Roxie rolled up the window and grabbed hold of the holy shit strap as Ironhide went off road towards a couple of trees and a large rock.

"Roxie calm down! Ironhide where's my gun?" Will switched right into army mode and yelled at Roxie who responded accordingly, then got to work looking for the gun he usually kept in a hidden panel in the back floor.

"Slaggit! You removed it last week to give it maintenance. I told you to keep a second one! Get ready to jump...NOW!" The doors flew open, the seat belts unclasped and the two humans were launched out of their seats by the large rock. Without the humans to worry about Ironhide to bi-pedal mode mid turn and fired a shot aimed for it's propeller blades.

With a quick manoeuvre Cyclonus managed to only get clipped by the plasma shot. Switching to his bi-pedal mode that was as tall but slimmer than Ironhide's he dove straight at the black bot laughing manically," Long time no see 'Hidey!"

Ironhide took the hit and went flying backwards, if he didn't they would fight to close to Will and Roxie. With a grunt Ironhide straightened up," Cyclonus, you demented piece of slag. I thought Megatron scrapped you for parts."

"HA! You wish Autoboob! That was a rumour I spread to see the look on your face when I shot your spark out!" Cyclonus proved his words by firing three consecutive missiles aimed at Ironhide's spark chamber.

Behind the large rock Roxie watched her first Autobot and Decepticon fight. Her mouth dry she asked Will," Are most fights like this?"

"No." Ironhide evaded the missiles and retaliated with a couple of shots himself, one managing to send pieces of Cyclonus' armour flying off his body. "They're much worse." Rising up into the sky Cyclonus started another barrage of bullets meant to hit Ironhide in the legs. A couple of bullets got lucky and hit the cables around Ironhide's left knee joint, his leg buckling he swore in Cybertronian. He'd forgotten that Cyclonus knew of his bad knee joint. He was the one that had made it bad with a well timed grenade.

Laughing like the mentally unstable Decepticon he was Cyclonus told his weakened foe," As much fun as it would be to shoot your face in I have other orders to follow. Where's that squishy femme?"

"Roxanne? What do you want with her Cyclonus? She isn't involved in the war. She doesn't fight alongside the Autobots." As unstable Cyclonus was at times he never got his instructions wrong. He'd expected this to be a planned attack to get rid of him or even Will, never had he imagined that Roxanne might be the crazy 'copter's objective for attacking.

"Pit if I know why Lord Megatron wants her. Tell you what, next time we meet I'll let you know." Cyclonus located the two fleshies by their heat signatures and took off towards them.

Roxie had caught most of what was being said and paled. Her heart beating too fast to be healthy she squeaked," Will can we run please?" Will didn't get to answer since Cyclonus had blasted their hiding place to bits. Both humans dodged but Roxie didn't have quick enough reflexes to evade all the large pieces of debris, a large chunk of rock caught her on the left side of the head immediately rendering her unconscious.

"ROXIE! Come on! Wake up!" Rushing to her side he found a large gash and prayed it didn't do permanent damage. Gathering her in his arms and carefully cradling her head Will took off towards Ironhide. With Roxie's added weight he was slowed considerably, easy prey for Cyclonus who continued to laugh in delirious delight.

Trusting in his aim Ironhide started firing each cannon with the intent to destroy if not at least give Will a chance to reach him with the girl. His knee may be out but it wouldn't hinder his driving.

Four shots hit Cyclonus square in the right shoulder leaving the arm limp and useless. Wheeling back Cyclonus snarled," Fine, keep the squishy for a little longer. We'll get her eventually! Later losers!" Switching to his alt news copter mode Cyclonus sped off back to the temporary base.

Ironhide didn't lower his cannons until there was no trace of Cyclonus or any sign of any other Decepticons in the area. Turning his attention to Will with the girl in his arms he told him in an agitated voice," No matter what you say I'm keeping some kind of secondary weaponry for you at all times."

"I won't argue with you. We need to get to shelter and get Roxie medical attention. How close are we to the R and R base?" Will didn't even consider his house, it was far too dangerous to go back there right after the enemy had left.

In his alt mode Ironhide reclined the passenger seat so it was completely flat for Roxie to be laid onto. As Will buckled the seat belt Ironhide answered," Close enough but she can't stay there, it is not built or armed for Decepticon attacks. I'm calling Optimus and letting him know we're bringing her to the main base, it's the only safe option for her."

Climbing into the driver's seat Will took out his cell phone," I agree, but I know Sarah won't be too impressed. Poor Annabelle is going to be heart broken."

"We can add that to the list of things to pay Cyclonus back for." Ironhide told this to Will just before Optimus responded.

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**P.S. I'm putting up a poll for a new username for myself, let me know what you think I should change it to :3**

**P.S.S. Got a sweater from my mom today, and on the front it reads 'Roxy'...My mom knows nothing about this fanfiction, coincidence?  
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	10. Relocated and Reintroduced

**J: 0.0 WOW! This chapter is not only really, really long but it goes everywhere and doesn't clarify alot. Those are my own thoughts anyways. I will let you, my lovely following duckies to tell me what you thought of this chapter. DON'T FORGET TO CHECK OUT THE FANART DONE MY IRONAFT30, THE LINKS ARE ON MY PROFILE!**

**THANKS TO: LynxbyLynx **(Someone is catching on to future events, this might shock you when it comes to he-who-will-not-be-named.) **Ultimateanime12 **(In truth, Roxie really wanted to change her birthday so it would be on Halloween xD) **Uncertain-Angel **(Happy you are enjoying! Hope this one doesn't disappoint too much :3) **Transformers123124 **(I love hearing readers say that :D) **Latina Shewolf **(Unfortunately the 'Cons will not be punished for a while yet -.-) **Standout4Christ **(Most of the favours were babysitting at the last minute or house cleaning jobs, she just has excellent timing. As for my spelling, I know it sucks, my profs tell me to and yet I still don't bother to edit xD) **XxBlackEaglexX **(I enjoyed writing that line so much it was hard not to laugh at the same time, just cause of how clear the image of it was in my mind lol.) **Ironaft30 **(As I have clarified multiple times now, it was only a flesh wound...And I can only think of Achmed the Dead Terrorist when I say that lol xD) **lightwolfheart **(I don't have it in me to work more on it right now! Sorry!) **Tailsdoll123 **(Maybe :D Lol, read and see my ducky!) **Londongirl007 **(You will not have to wait any longer!)

**DISCLAIMER: ME NO OWNEE TRANSFORMERS, ONLY ROXIE! **

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Chapter Nine – Relocated and Reintroduced**

The last thing Roxie had seen and heard was the big ass helicopter Deception fire a missile at the very boulder she and Will were hiding behind. From that point it was darkness and voices with the odd background noise.

The darkness that she floated in was quite pleasant and Roxie didn't see any reason to leave it just yet, so she let herself float along and listen to the voices.

"We need medic here now!" That was Will, his voice strong and demanding, just the right tone for a man of his standing. Roxie always liked that the man didn't let his military career leak too much into his home life. A bunch of other voices jumbled together, non of them familiar.

"Will, the transport is here, I will go with the medic to the base. Return home and update Sarah only on the details she needs to know. Gather Roxanne's belongings and get to the base when you can, and please apologize to Annabelle for me." Ironhide's voice rose above all others momentarily, the other voices seemed to disperse, Roxie guessed the other men had left the giant robot and his human partner to talk close to her. His words were clear enough but Roxie still didn't understand anything. Why was she going with Ironhide and a medic, she didn't feel any pain. What did Ironhide do that Will needed to apologize to Annabelle for on his behalf? If the darkness wasn't so comfortable she would have asked these questions out loud.

The sudden sound of a helicopter seemed to make the darkness vibrate, it didn't like the noise, it reminded her of the crazy copter that had showed up. That brought up the next question she wanted to ask, why did it want her? No, it had said Megatron wanted her. The giant Decepticon leader that she had talked to when she was eight hadn't looked so scary. But then he got free, killed her father, and was now sending his men after her. He was really scary now, and she did not want to talk to him again.

The sound of the helicopter was gone, she felt herself being shifted and moved around, the darkness was beginning to turn grey. As the grey grew lighter and lighter a certain sound grew louder and louder.

Groaning Roxie asked," Please tell me someone got the license plate on that damned helicopter so I can shove his blades down his throat in exchange for this headache."

"You will be doing no such thing Ms. Glitch." The gruff but still kind voice helped Roxie to figure out what had brought her out of the darkness.

Her eyes still shut Roxie put her hands over her ears and groaned louder," Stop scanning me please! You're not helping my pain go away any faster Ratchet."

"I will stop once I am positive there is nothing wrong with your cerebral cortex." Ratchet pressed a button by the berth that put it into a sitting position.

Opening her eyes slowly Roxie found herself looking at Ratchet's holoform. Putting a hand to the source of her throbbing headache she felt a large swath of cloth held in place by medical tape. Remembering what happened with the helicopter she asked," How long have I been out of it for?"

"Almost three Earth days. What is your birthday and the name of Will Lennox' daughter?" Ratchet had taken out a flash light and was testing her depth and light reception in her eyes.

"July 13th 1991. Her name is Annabelle...Three days? Oh crap! It's her birthday today isn't it? Does she know what happened? Oh my god, I broke my promise! I told her I was going to be back and I didn't-" Roxie had lost all thoughts of her condition and jumped right off the bed and started looking for a phone or anything that would let her get a hold of the little girl that was probably in need of reassurance.

"Roxanne Rose Evans get back on that bed now!" Roxie froze, relaxed and did as she was told. Back on the bed she looked up sheepishly at Will who had entered the med bay to find her on her feet and Ratchet just about to sedate her.

Putting away the needle Ratchet asked Will incredulously," How did you do that? Non of my patients ever respond that well."

"It's a parent-child thing. Try using their full name and a really scary tone of voice next time. Roxie, don't worry about Annabelle. She already knows what happened and doesn't blame you. All she wants is for you to get better." Will's words brought relief to the girl's features until they changed to confusion as the sounds of the area finally sunk in.

"Soooo, where am I?" The question simple in her mind but the exchanged look between Will and Ratchet's holoform that said, 'Are you telling her?' told her that the answer wouldn't be as simple to answer. It was decided that Will would answer the question when Ratchet's holoform just disappeared.

Sighing Will offered his arm for Roxie to use as support since her headache wasn't helping her balance. Leading her to the door that he'd come in through he led her out into the large open main hanger," For your protection we decided it would be best for you to stay at the base of NEST operations. This is the Diego Garcia base."

Roxie felt like her jaw was a few centimetres from hitting the floor. There were military men and women of all nationalities all over the place, the ones that were close by gave Will a nod and Roxie a small smile. Close to the massive open hanger doors a raised platform set with computers and screens looked like a communication station. Looking further in she saw that there were several garage doors and two hallways on each side. All in all Roxie was sure she was standing in a building that could easily swallow someone of her stature and never let her go. Gulping Roxie told Will in a small voice," I do not blame you for wanting to go home whenever you can. I feel like I'm in an ant farm."

"Hey it's not that bad once you adjust to the size. You must be Roxanne Glitch, the first civilian to be brought here without asking to come first." A well built African American man had separated from a throng of soldiers to come shake Roxie's hand. He wore a uniform that matched the one that Will had worn to his meetings, a badge on his arm read NEST along with a sword.

Smiling despite her feeling of unease Roxie jested," Didn't know military bases were big tourist attractions these days." This earned a chuckle from the large man who smiled wider," I'm Chief Master Robert Epps, you're welcome to call me Epps."

"Roxie, do you feel up to introducing yourself to a few others?" Will's question was hesitant, he didn't want to push her to do anything else when she just woke up, but Ratchet had told him earlier that day that besides the massive headache she would probably have she would be able to move around for a little while. There had been a lot of emphasis on 'little while.'

Roxie had a good feeling about who these others were that he wanted her to meet, her head felt like a hammer was constantly pounding on it and her body was a bit sluggish but she didn't see any reason not to accept the opportunity. Giving a shrug she replied," Sure, just stay where I can see you at all times. If I get lost I will scream." Shaking his head Will pat Roxie on the shoulder and led her towards the back of the base, Epps following right behind them.

Getting to one of the garage doors Will punched in a code, swiped his access key then let his eye get scanned. Seeing all the security measures Roxie raised both eyebrows, both Will and Epps just shrugged. In their line of work lots of security was necessary. The door opened halfway so it was easily human accessible. The door led to a steep incline that vaguely reminded Roxie of Sector Seven hiding underneath the Hoover Dam. Keeping these thoughts to herself they descended at least two stories of stairs that went along a ramp. The further they went the louder a collection of voices became, at one point she heard one female voice ask," What are you two doing?" The reply must have been too quiet or not answered at all.

The stairs finally levelled out and Roxie was intrigued to find a large complete concrete out lay with walls dividing what Roxie guessed to be private rooms since they had garage doors between the walls. In the center of the floor were parked numerous vehicles ranging from a yellow rescue hummer to three identical bikes with different colouring. In the middle of the group was a blue and red flame decorated Semi Peterbilt transport truck.

Removing her hearing mufflers Roxie stepped forward alone. Keeping her voice steady she greeted," It's an honour to finally meet you Optimus Prime." All at once each vehicle present transformed to their true forms and created a semi-circle around her.

Crouching down to be on a better eye level with Roxie the leader of the Autobots inclined his head," As it is my relief to see you are not harmed."

The tension beginning to leave her body Roxie grinned," To be honest this is nothing but a scratch in comparison to what I've gotten from humans."

"As far as your cranial damages go that is your most severe, and should not be thought lightly of." Ratchet, being the main medic present had to correct Roxie on her attempt to brush off the damage she'd sustained.

Putting her hands on her hips Roxie countered," You would only know that from my medical records, which last time I checked are still considered to be classified information."

"I took all legal means to acquire them." Ratchet's counter got Roxie to move her hands from her hips to simply crossing them. She never liked nosey people, especially nosey doctors. Their medical curiosity usually led them to harrassing her for tests.

"Is it true you can hear information from our sparks?" A silver armoured mech that stood right next to a scowling gold armoured mech had asked this.

Walking closer towards the pair she paused for a second then smiled to reply," Yes, depending on how close I am to you I can hear things from your spark. Just now your spark told me your designation is Sideswipe and your twin here is known as Sunstreaker." The dumbfounded expressions on both mechs was worth sounding like a bit of a show off.

Chromia and her matching companions rolled forward to giggle," Thanks, you just won me some of their prized high grade energon. How are you feeling Roxie?"

Returning Chromia's smile she replied," Just a splitting headache...That Jolt is making worse with his scans." There had been an electric blue Chevy Volt behind Ratchet that Roxie had missed when growling at Ratchet. When she had answered the twins he had moved closer to do some scans of his own.

Facing him full on she asked," Didn't Ratchet or Ironhide tell you that your scans sound absolutely terrible?"

"That does not matter if the scans allow us to tell the cause of your ailment and allow us to fix the problem." Jolt, being the proud bot he was, would not let a mere human female talk down to him.

"And what if I don't want to be helped? Depending on how bad off I am I can stand to endure a little pain rather than endure the pain and endure that noise five times over." Roxie knew she'd won, the outrage in Jolt's blue optics told her that before he walked away back up the ramp.

"You're right Chromia, she is a unique femme. Can you tell what our names are?" The pink armoured Autobot that was identical to Chromia and the vibrant blue armoured Autobot female pointed to herself and the blue femme.

"Arcee and Flareup. You three sound beautiful by the way, I mean your sparks. It's a perfectly synched hum that sounds like three harps playing the same song but in different notes." After naming the femmes Roxie had closed her eyes to listen more intently to the sound she was describing.

Opening her eyes and looking slightly confused she did a head count. Head tilted to the side she asked Optimus," I don't think I'm hearing the names completely right, but there's another set of twins. Skirts and Buttflap? Where are they?"

Two loud 'clunks' came from behind Roxie, turning around she found herself looking up at the two twins she had misnamed. Getting right in her face the twin with red armour ranted," That's Skids and Mudflap girl! You diss us like that again and you're gonna get in a whole new world of pain."

"Yea man, the Hatchet's going to clean your squishy self off the floor. Ow!" While the twins were telling Roxie off Ironhide had driven up behind them, changed to bi-pedal mode and punched both mechs in the head sending them flying.

"If you two idiots hadn't hidden yourselves she would not have gotten your names wrong. Download more intelligence or keep quiet." Ironhide glared at the minor twins until they muttered some "whatevers" then did as Jolt had and went up the ramp.

"How are your injuries Ironhide? And don't tell me you didn't get hurt, I saw everything that happened before that stupid helicopter blew up the boulder." Roxie heard a couple of giggles from the twins and triplets, it was always amusing to see their scariest member get put down.

His glare a little less intense than the one he'd given Skids and Mudflap Ironhide told her," Unlike you human I am not harmed so easily."

"If you don't count your two damaged leg cables, the chunks missing from your armour on your chest and your dented helm then yes, you're perfectly fine." Ratchet stepped forward waving a wrench that hadn't been in his hand a moment ago.

"Ironhide, if you were human you'd be in critical condition or dead...Thank you for your help that day. I owe you, and you Will." Roxie made her voice absolute so both males knew they couldn't argue against her.

"We would like to discuss that day Ms. Evans if you don't mind." Optimus had watched with interest as the human youngling interacted with his species as if she had known them her whole life. He didn't know if this was because of her knowing of their existence since she was young, or because her hearing allowed her to hear that which normal humans didn't. When the topic of discussion changed to the reason of her presence Optimus drew her attention back to him.

"I don't know how much I can clarify but I'll try." Roxie truthfully felt ready to down a whole bottle of Advil her head hurt so much, yet the well mannered behaviour of a guest was put into her mind from day one by her father made her suck it up and try to assist these beings she really wanted to get to know.

"Can you think of any reason for Cyclonus' attempt to abduct you?" This was the main cause of confusion. They understood that Roxie came into contact with Megatron through her father's work. Her father, Richard James Evans, was the top scientist to study and reverse engineer the operations of Megatron's head. What they could acquire from Sector Seven's database stated that the man had made many minor discoveries that led to the development of the current big money makers, cell phones and GPS. Nothing in the man's reports showed anything that could lead Megatron to want revenge on Roxie for what her father did.

"Well, I doubt it's the reason, but the one time I was with my dad around Megatron I stubbed my toe on Megatron's foot so then I kicked him and called him a worthless piece of scrap metal." Roxie didn't like really tense atmospheres and felt that that might lighten it a bit. She got a snicker from the twins, a double eyebrow raise from Ratchet, and proud smiles from the triplets. "Besides that I can't think of anything. Is it possible he's just insane and chose me at random to be a pet or something?"

"No, Megatron would not be leader of the Deceptions if he was deemed unstable in any way. Since you, the target, are unaware of Megatron's intentions and reasons we have no choice but to wait for another strike. For your safety Roxanne you must remain here." Optimus did not like it when his brother started doing things that he couldn't put a reason to, the last time such an occurrence happened it lead to his death as well as Sam's.

Roxie beamed big and bright at the Autobot leader," Hey, if it means it will be impossible for the government to get me then I will be the most well behaved human on the whole base...As long as I have my essentials."

"I'm afraid it is still very possible for your government to apprehend you Roxanne. As part of our agreement with the world Leaders we have been assigned a government liaison, he is a strict, rule and law loving idiot that would love to hand you over to the authorities if it means more power for him. He comes to the base every Friday and stays until Sunday. During those days I recommend you stay hidden." Ratchet told all this to Roxie who slowly contorted her face to absolute misery.

Her voice further proving her dampened mood she asked," Alright, can you show me what he looks like so I know who to be invisible to?" At this the twins, triplets, and even Ironhide projected variations of their liaison hanging limply with a noose around his neck, a house covering all but his feet (the triplets love the _'Wizard of Oz_') and a scorch marked crater in the ground. Will and Epps were beside themselves laughing and saying which was their favorite or how to improve them.

Her smile back Roxie giggled," Let me rephrase that. Can I see what he looks like in one piece and still alive and uncontorted?" A chorus of "awws" went up as the creative projections were turned off. Smiling himself Optimus used his optics to project their beloved liaison Galloway.

No one expected Roxie to go pale and immediately go running behind Will to hide. Her voice a timid squeak she asked," Okay, I get it, it's Galloway, now turn it off please."

Galloway's name had not been given, thus letting those present know that Roxanne was clearly not acting and was very much afraid of the man. Optimus quickly turned off the projection,"I apologize, we should have told you his name. What history do you have with Galloway?"

Staying behind Will Roxie replied sounding a little confident since the projection was gone," Have you ever heard of a kid being traumatized by something and being afraid of it for the rest of their lives? Well that's what happened with Galloway."

His voice tight from the growing anger he felt Ironhide asked," What did that Pit spawn human do?"

"When I was 10 the asshole kidnapped me on my way home from school and handed me over to the government's medical research department. Lucky for me a teacher saw it happen and notified my dad, who then got Sector Seven's soldiers to bust in on the doctors right before they could start probing around in my brain." Will had gone completely rigid with rage, if he had known about this last year he would have just pushed the detestable man out of the plane without getting him to pull the parachute.

"Optimus, might we make an exception for Galloway?" Chromia asked this while going to Roxie and putting a comforting hand on her back. On Cybertron the punishment for mistreating a sparkling was severe depending on the harm it had done to the sparkling. Though they were now soldiers the femmes still had paternal programming hard wired into their systems. Hearing this had ignited this programming in all three femmes who now had their guns charging with the fiercest glares their face plates could make.

"No Chromia, we cannot harm the humans if we are to remain on their planet, you know this. However, for the duration of his stay I will be looking else where while...unfortunate incidents occur around Galloway. I will be highly disappointed if he were to return next week." That was all the bots present needed to hear from their leader before speeding off to start getting their best and nastiest pranks together for Galloway's arrival that day.

Optimus and Will were the only two left with Roxie, which she was fine with. All those Autobots watching her was starting to unnerve her a bit. Knowing that her old nightmare was going to meet some untimely accidents eased Roxie enough to step out from behind Will and ask more calmly," If I'm going to be staying here, where can I sleep?"

"You have two options. One of my best female soldiers, Private Scotch, has convinced one of the other privates to move to a different bunk house so you can sleep there. Your other option is to share the triplets' quarters. It's your call." Will had held up his fingers for each option.

"Through my ears your options sounded like this. Bunk down with at least thirty other woman, guaranteeing that one if not three other female soldiers that could whoop my ass will have it out for me because she was kicked out of her original sleeping place. Or, bunk down with three awesome alien robot females that I could safely gossip with? Gee Will, what option do you think I'll take?" Optimus listened to this strange rendition of Will's words and inwardly wondered if it was possible to find a whole new dictionary and thesaurus to understand human femmes.

"Right. Optimus can you let the triplets know? I'm going to take Roxie for a tour before Galloway gets here." Optimus nodded and did just that while Will lead Roxie back up the stairs. Roxie didn't move until she waved bye to Optimus first though.

Getting back up top Roxie had to ask," Before we go on this grand tour can I get some Advil or something? My head feels ready to explode."

"Yea sure, sorry for not thinking of that earlier." Will smiled apologetically and led Roxie back towards the medical bay, only they went to the one for human patients.

From there she was shown the location of the mess hall, the various washrooms, the arms room, the men's bunk houses, the women's bunk houses, the emergency bunker and the wash pit for the Autobots. At the sight of the wash pit Roxie was reminded that she hadn't bathed for over three days. Bringing this to Will's attention he laughed.

Roxie thanked him a thousand times over when he showed her a duffel bag filled with all the clothes she'd bought with Sarah. Much to her relief the female showers were divided with walls and shower curtains for privacy. With the shower and the medicine in effect Roxie felt completely normal again.

Dressed in a pair of new jeans, her favourite turquoise tube top, a blue jean jacket and her dog collar Roxie felt something was missing. It clicked in when she saw Arcee drive by, rushing over to Will she asked," My bike. What happened to my bike?"

"Whoa, calm down. It's here but its getting fixed. Our top mechanic has been working on it since you got here. He's really good and quick, it should be done by now." Will had a feeling it was more than just concern for her property that had Roxie enquiring about her bike.

Calming down a little she asked," Can we go see it? There's a couple of things I left in it that I need."

"What things? Depending on what they are I might have to confiscate them. Security protocols are strict here."

"My battery recharger and my cell player." The battery recharger Will knew about, on Monday she'd drawn a rough outline of it. The cellplayer was a different matter.

He led the way to one hallways he didn't include in the tour since he didn't think it had any rooms she'd need to know about. They stopped in front of a door that had various dents and metal plates covering what Roxie assumed to be holes. Will knocked three times before cracking the door open and sticking his head in," Tools? Hey Tools you here?"

There came no reply so Will pushed the door open the rest of the way, revealing one hell of a work room. Various tools, dismantled weapons, cafeteria trays and other odds and ends were scattered all over the place. Leaning up against the far wall was her bike, stepping over the things she couldn't name Roxie asked Will," Is Tools a first or last name?" Reaching her friend she gave it a quick once over. The deep scratches had been fixed and repainted, cracks that she hadn't noticed before were sealed and the whole thing looked waxed over.

Will watched the teen flick a little latch on the under side of the seat and flip the seat up entirely. Reaching into a compartment she pulled out a small black leather purse. "Tools is his nickname, his real name is Gregory Harper. He's our mechanic on his off time, does weapon maintenance, and one of our field scouts. He's a genius when he's not pulling pranks with Sideswipe and Sunstreaker. Lord knows he's been in the brig almost as many times as them."

They left the disaster zone and went back to the main hanger. "Sounds like a fun guy. Where is he?"

"Probably went home for the weekend. After a couple of bad brush ups with Galloway Optimus recommended he go home during the time the Pit spawned jerk was here." There was a hidden story behind the brush ups Will spoke of, but Roxie decided the person they happened to would be better to ask.

"So what's that cellplayer? If it's a kind of cell phone you can't keep it." Will saw Roxie get stiff in defense and inwardly sighed. There was always a problem with the soldiers when they couldn't keep their cell phones, but with the Decepticon SoundWave still at large they couldn't risk the base being discovered through a stray cell phone.

Thinking fast she told him," The cell phone circuitry isn't connected, I've just been using it as an mp3 player." Will shook his head and held out his hand. Frowning she opened the purse and pulled out a completely metal device that fit in the palm of her hand.

When Will took it he couldn't stop himself from turning it over in his hands. It looked exactly like an mp3 player, it had the play, skip forward, back, stop and volume control. Looking back up at Roxie he asked," This is a cell phone too?"

"Like I said, the cell phone circuitry is disconnected, I've only been using the mp3 function. I was thinking of making one for Annabelle for her birthday. That thing can be run over five times and still work perfectly fine." At the thought of Annabelle owning an indestructible mp3 player that would be free instead of an iPod that costs a hefty price Will had second thoughts on confiscating the item.

"I'll make you a deal. You keep this but only if you get Tools to remove the cellular components." Will held it back out to her,if she took it she accepted the terms.

She took hold of it, unclasped two little clasps on the sides to reveal all the wires and components. With two yanks she held two wires, closed it back up and handed Will the wires. "There you go, it's just an mp3 player now." Will blinked down at the yellow and green wires in his hand.

"It doesn't take just two wires to make a cell phone out of an mp3 player…Does it?"

"No, but those wires prevent it from getting a cellular signal as well as preventing me from switching it cellular mode. My dad made the cell player so I could still listen to music and own a cell phone. He made me take it apart and put it back together so I could fix any problems that could come up while he was working." Roxie stared fondly at the little device she'd gotten for her 13th birthday, it had been so magical how her dad had turned her hearing mufflers into headphones and then a headset just by plugging in a wire between them and the device.

Will saw the fond look and made his decision. "Alright, as long as you don't find wires to replace these you can hang onto that. I need to get going, there's a lot of paper work I need to do thanks to that stupid whirly bird. Why don't you try and find the triplets so you can work out sleeping arrangements." He'd made the decision by remembering that he trusted Roxie to watch his baby girl, in comparison to a life trusting Roxie not to reconnect her cell phone was a simple matter. Before Roxie could thank the man he ruffled her hair and left.

Tucking the purse into the duffel bag she'd been hauling around she mumbled outloud to herself," Okay, find the triplets or at least one of them. Last time I saw one of them was back outside, but He-Who-I-Will-Not-Name is suppose to get here soon. So out in the open is not where I want to be. Hmmm….All of the Autobots can talk to each other in some special robot way, if I find one of them in here then I can ask them to ask the triplets where they are. Good plan Roxie, now stop talking to yourself and do it." Straightening her back to portray and feel more confident she went for the med bay first, during the tour Will had told her that Ratchet and Jolt could often be found there since a few of the Autobots frequented the medbay often due to pranks, rough housing, and sometimes even accidents.

As she approached the doors she could hear two voices indicating that Ratchet and Jolt were indeed present. Remembering her first conversation, or more so argument, with Jolt Roxie winced. The blue bot probably wouldn't be happy to see her again so soon. She knocked on the door first then poked her head in, Ratchet and Jolt were facing away from the door and were looking at something on their giant table. Stepping in further Roxie called out," Hi Ratchet, hi Jolt."

Ratchet turned to face her but Jolt continued to fiddle with something in an attempt to ignore her." Hello Roxanne, are you feeling alright? I was informed by Doctor White that you saw him for some medication for your headache." Out of habit Ratchet gave her a quick scan over ignoring the way her face scrunched up.

"I'm fine now. When can I remove this bandage? It really itches." Roxie pointed to the wad of cloth taped to her head.

"If nothing else comes along to cause you further damage then you may remove it by Sunday. Your other injuries are healed enough now that you may remove those bandages." Ratchet smiled at the dramatic sigh of relief the human femme gave at this news.

Roxie had actually forgotten about the road rash and scrapes right after her shower. She took a step to go to the washroom and remove the bandages but stopped herself. Jolt had been ignoring her the whole time but she'd caught him budge at the mention of other injuries. Deciding to be the more mature species she told him" Hey Jolt, sorry for arguing with you before. You were just defending your programming. Oh, I keep forgetting! Ratchet, do you know where I can find Chromia? I need to talk to her about sleeping arrangements."

"Just a click…She says she will meet you by the hanger doors once she and the other femmes have finished putting together Galloway's welcoming gift." Ratchet shuddered to think of what the femmes were going to welcome the liaison with. Roxie gave a two finger salute then went to the washroom to remove the bandages.

Since the door was metal and he assumed they were out of her hearing range Ratchet turned to Jolt and asked the younger medic," What were you saying about human's lacking proper mannerisms?"

"Fine I take that back, but they are still too primitive to warrant complete trust and compassion from us. I will never understand Ironhide's complete loyalty to the Lennox family." Jolt muttered all this while putting the finishing touches on their project. It was the bracelet that was to be Annabelle's birthday gift. Jolt was one of the few bots that liked Annabelle, but wouldn't go out of his way to meet her every whim like Ironhide and Chromia. Sunstreaker and Sideswipe were on similar wave length in concerns to the sparkling.

Ratchet contemplated Jolt's words while inspecting the bracelet for any flaws. The bracelet was a simple silver chain with a child useable clasp, instead of one Autobot insignia there were four, making it more of a charm bracelet. The black and silver charm was the tracking chip, the purple and silver charm was the health monitor, the red and silver, and yellow and silver charms were just for decoration. Content with the work Ratchet put it in a tiny box that he would give to Will to gift wrap later. To Jolt he suggested," I do not fully understand Ironhide's attachment either, but I am comfortable being friends with each member of the Lennox family, and that is because I have spent time with them. Maybe if you spent some time getting to know one of the humans you would see what we see in them."

"That's not going to happen anytime soon Ratchet. There has yet to be a human worth my time." Jolt told this to Ratchet just as the washroom door opened and Roxie stepped out with the bandages neatly folded up in her hands.

"Ratchet, do I just throw these out or is it possible for them to be reused?" Roxie asked this instead of asking why Jolt more or less stormed out of the room.

Shaking his head at the close minded bot Ratchet answered Roxie," You can just throw those out. It is unsanitary to reuse bandages."

"Okay, I'll see you later then Ratchet." She dumped the bandages into the garbage and left to find Chromia.

When the door had closed Ratchet said to himself outloud," Jolt better learn to get along with humans, or he won't succeed me as chief medic as long as we are on Earth."

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**P.S. I'm keeping my new username poll open until my next chapter update. If you haven't voted please do!**

**P.S.S. In your reviews please tell me how to improve the Autobots, I'm not an expert on their personalities so any suggestions are welcome!  
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	11. Love At First Wall

**J: You guys never cease to disappoint :3 My review count continues to grow as does my happiness and drive to keep working on this fanfic! In this chapter you guys get to meet a brand new character created by Ironaft30, there will be a picture of him posted on my profile for you to check out in case my description doesn't give you a clear enough image. Just as I am not the greatest at action sequences, nor am I great at romantic portrayals, so don't get your hopes up lol.  
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**THANKS TO: Psyconinja7 **(Thank you for that tip, I'll keep it in mind, and it's okay, I'll make do :3) **XxBlackEaglexX **(Thanks! I needed that info, I'm just going with personalities from other fanfics I read. And he is most like the Transformerverse equivalent to Voldemort :P) **Uncertain-Angel **( Thank yous, I shall continue to make you love it xD) **Standout4Christ **(Happy to make your life a little sunnier, and I agree, it didn't seem to sound right coming from Optimus but I just went with it, I'll try and be more careful with the big bot's words.) **Londongirl007 **(Hope this one turns out good too!) **Ultimateanime12 **(I know! So I'm using Faecat's description of him. Hopefully he has more involvement in the next movie :3) **Tailsdoll123 **(Really? I thought my Skids and Mudflap were really lacking -.-" And whatever that something was was not mistaken :D) **supergirlprime **(Ahaha, um, thanks for the enthusiam, but I need him to be an afthole for the rest of the fanfic xD) **Tatyana Witwicky** ( Thanks, that's more or less my greatest fear is my OC being Mary Sue D: Hope you keep on enjoying!) **At the Heart of The Storm** (Looks like you got really lucky here, not many readers review and get the next chapter in the same day lol.)

**DISCLAIMER: TRANSFORMERS BELONGS TO HASBRO! ROXANNE GLITCH BELONGS TO ME! THE NEW CHARACTER BELONGS TO IRONAFT30!**

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Chapter Ten – Love At First Wall**

Because Roxie had woken up midday she couldn't do much before Galloway's arrival. She worked with Chromia to set up a comfortable little cot in their quarters with a comfy pillow and blanket. After that she got a semi-decent meal from the mess hall where she met a couple of really nice female soldiers named Beth and Alice. When Galloway showed up Roxie went running back to her new room and entertained herself with her mp3 player.

The triplets showed up an hour later laughing, Roxie joined them when they showed Galloway covered in old motor oil and silly string. She asked how they did both and Chromia told her the process took longer than it took to trigger it. It took Chromia a good ten minutes to coax Roxie out of the room to get supper, the explanation of Galloway going to a hotel every night wasn't strong enough until she reminded Roxie that it would take Galloway hours to clean off all the oil and silly string. That night they had stayed up late talking about Roxie's past crushes and relationships, excluding Joey, Chromia had told Arcee and Flareup about the betrayal the Pit spawned male had done to Roxie. Not wanting to upset their new human friend and roommate they specifically asked about anything but him. At one point Roxie managed to turn the discussion to Chromia and her obvious developing relationship with Ironhide. The crafty femme ended the discussion before it barely started with a well aimed pillow. The human vs femme pillow fight lasted a good twenty minutes until Ratchet banged on the door and told them that Roxie needed rest if she wanted to stop getting headaches. Unable to resist they'd opened the door and threw their pillows at Ratchet's head then closed the door laughing.

"Roxie. Roxie, wake up." Chromia nudged the human's shoulder for a third time only causing Roxie to burrow under the covers even more. "Roxie wake up or I'll scan you."

"No, no! I'm up! I'm up!" Roxie sat up immediately and put on her hearing mufflers, she feared for the condition of her ears the day she got scanned without her hearing mufflers.

Smiling in satisfaction Chromia told her," Good, now get dressed and head to the med bay. Ratchet wants to give you a proper check up before Galloway gets here."

"I thought getting scanned was the equivalent to getting a check up? Why do I need a proper check up?" Waking up and being told you had to get a check up before getting breakfast was not Roxie's ideal way to start the morning. Waking up to a happy little girl's hug and a mom's morning greeting was ideal. _'Since when did Sarah become my mom in my mind? Oh well, she won' t complain I'm sure.'_

"Knowing the Hatchet, this is his way of getting back at you for the pillow attack." The exaggerated frown Roxie made made Chromia laugh. She, Arcee and Flareup had thoroughly enjoyed last night and hoped the days to follow would be just as fun.

Since the base was located in a very warm climate Roxie decided to wear her black muscle shirt and black cargo shorts. The combination showed the healing bruises and scrapes from her last chase with the agents causing Chromia and the recently returned Arcee to wince a little. Giving the two femmes a calm smile she told the sisters," It may look bad but I barely feel them anymore."

Taking her word for it Arcee and Chromia kept pace with Roxie out of the second floor up until the med bay door, they wished her luck with a giggle then took off out of Ratchet's sensor range. Knocking on the door Roxie called out," You're unwilling patient has arrived for her check up."

"Good, get in here so we can start." The door for the Autobots opened revealing Ratchet with a smug smile, Roxie stuck out her tongue and proceeded inside.

Hopping up on an Autobot sized examining table that was lowered just for her Roxie asked," Chromia didn't answer me, but aren't scans the equivalent to check ups for you guys?"

"In a sense yes, however scans do not relay information complete information to me when done on humans. If I were to scan Ironhide's knee joint I would know every last thing needed to adjust and assist the nanobots repairing the injury. When I scan your head injury all I can learn is that it is beginning to heal but I do not know how it is effecting the rest of your body." Ratchet explained all this wile raising the berth closer to his eye level.

Swinging her legs over the edge and keeping her sight from the floor Roxie commented," Guess that makes enough sense for me to not complain...Where;s you right hand man, er, bot by the way?"

"If you mean Jolt then he's out on the obstacle course with the others training, he may be a medic but he still needs to keep in top fighting condition. Hold still while I look over your head wound." Ratchet may have answered but Roxie could tell that he was fully focused on his job. Since his hands were far too large he opened his index finger to let little claws remove the bandage on her forehead. Being a good girl Roxie held still, she winced when one of his claws touched the wound itself.

"Sorry, it seems that it's healing nicely but the bandage will need to be on for a while yet, no matter how itchy it gets. What will you be doing today to keep yourself amused and out of sight?" Ratchet placed a smaller less bulky bandage over the wound then moved on to checking her ears, eyes and throat.

Roxie waited until he was checking her blood pressure before answering," I was hoping to get started on Annabelle's birthday present, just the preliminary sketches. Know where I can get some blue print paper and a desk?"

Pleased with Roxie's blood pressure test he went on to checking her reflexes, something that Roxie was quite impressed with. "Hm, if Tools is still on base he would be the best one to ask. I saw him yesterday so he might still be here. Knowing that human he probably wanted to do something with the twins first. Take in a deep breathe slowly." Ratchet's very small mallet had gone back into his finger and small sensor pads came out to snake down the back of her shirt and attach to her back.

"Will was complaining about him too. Is he that much of a trouble maker?" Though Ratchet's voice had sounded exasperated Roxie could still tell that the medic thought highly of him.

Removing the sensors and saving all the information Ratchet replied," Only when he's with the blasted twins. On his own he's harmless enough, well unless you agitate him I'm finished your examination Roxanne you may go."

"Great. I'll go hunt down this Tools fellow if he's still here." The berth was lowered and Roxie eagerly hopped off, she had nothing against Ratchet, she just didn't want any more scans or sensors touching her. Either it was universal or just further punishment she didn't know, but like a stethoscope the ends of the sensors that had touched her bare back were freezing.

Roxie walked out of the med bay and stopped. Two blurs, one gold and one silver had practically flown out of the hanger. "Wonder what got them going."

"You guys suck! Come back here and get me!" Looking to the back of the hangar where the twins had come from Roxie saw a very amusing sight. First came a running male clad in the NEST uniform running really fast. A second later Roxie saw why. Ironhide covered head to toe in bumper stickers was right behind him with his cannons out and charging. The sight of Ironhide did her in, she began laughing hard enough to double over and get tears in the corner of her eyes.

The red headed male that was being pursued by the furious Ironhide heard the laughter, turning to look he saw a girl with artificial red hair laughing her ass off. He had intended only to get a glimpse of the person laughing, but once he laid eyes on her he couldn't look away, he was so enthralled he didn't see that he was heading straight for a wall.

Recovered enough to open her eyes again Roxie saw where the guy was heading," Hey! Dude, watch out for that -" 'BANG!' "Wall...Pfft, oh my god! Hahahaha! I can't believe he actually pulled a George! HAHAHA!" Although she was laughing Roxie ran over to where the poor schmuck was laying on the floor. Ironhide had stopped to make sure he was still alive then continued in his hunt for the twins.

Getting to his side Roxie crouched down and lightly slapped his face," Hey, you alright?"

"The guy developed this big goofy smile when he replied," Uh huh."

"How many fingers am I holding up?" Roxie held up three, she really doubted the guy was entirely alright.

He smiled bigger and answered," Pretty." The fell unconscious leaving Roxie with a blush and an unamused expression.

Straightening up she sighed," Right, I'll get Ratchet...Stay unconscious."

Running back to the med bay she opened the door and yelled," Ratchet! Got a new patient for you. He's on the other side of the hangar out cold."

Ratchet groaned, he had thought he'd heard muffled yelling, running and laughter a minute ago. Getting off his giant chair he followed Roxie while asking in a sour note," Is it a human or an Autobot?"

"Human. He ran straight into the wall, he was conscious for like five seconds." As they approached Roxie saw that Epps was already helping the guy to his feet.

"Tools, I should have known. Who did you and the twins prank this time that you would run senselessly into a wall?" Ratchet extended his hand and picked up the guy Roxie now knew was the infamous Tools.

Raising an eyebrow in disbelief she asked," That's Tools? I was expecting a boughed up nerd with glasses." Epps gave a snort and left feeling reassured that the kid was going to be looked after, as well as to tell Will about the idiot actually running into a wall.

His scans showing no damage expect for a tender spot on his forehead Ratchet put him back on the floor but leaning up against the wall. "He will be fine this time. Since you were going to go look for him could you stay with him until he's up on his feet Roxanne? Last time I left him unattended while unconscious the other soldiers thought it funny to decorate his face, which it was." The face decorating incident he been blown out of portions once it got going. Tools had figured out who'd done the decorating and had then done the same to them, only in permanent marker. Skids and Mudflap thought it was hilarious and did the same to Ironhide and Bumblebee during one of his rare visits.

Roxie gave Ratchet a salute," I'll stay at my post until the patient recovers, sir." Ratchet gave a nod then went back to the med bay to prepare it for the twins arrival, it was only a matter of time before they were carried of dumped off.

Crouching down to eye level with the guy she got a better look at his face. The guy had a well balanced complexion, thick lashes and slightly chapped lips. "You my wall hugging friend seem to be the perfect example of a girl's dream guy. Let's hope your personality is better than all the other perfect examples I've met."

"And what were those other perfect examples like?" Roxie jumped back with a yelp.

Glaring at the grinning man she asked," Just how long have you been awake?"

"Since Ratchet picked me up, if I was awake he might have put me in the brig knowing that I'd done something. My name's Gregory Harper, but you can just call me Tools." He had gotten to his feet then offered a hand to Roxie.

Reluctantly she accepted the hand up and found she had to crane her neck quite a bit to meet his light blue eyes. Not wanting to seem rude she responded," Roxanne Glitch, Roxie or Glitch is acceptable. Was that all you, mostly you or kinda you with the bumper stickers?"

"I did half of the work. The twins made me a bet that I couldn't modify a label maker into a bumper sticker maker. After they get put back together and released from the brig they have to show me more of the Cybertronian language." A dreamy smile came onto Tools' face that had reminded her of when her dad would think of the new section of Megatron's head he would get to study.

Smiling a little herself she remembered her bike," From what I've heard from Will and Ratchet, and from that work you did on my bike I'm surprised they'd make that challenge. Thanks for that by the way, she looks good as new."

'_Wow, I could seriously get drunk from that smile. She is really cute...Wait, Roxanne? Where did I hear that name already?...Oh...' _Being a man with little to no brain to mouth filter Tools asked his next thought," You're welcome...Um, not to be insensitive and remind you of your problems. But aren't you the civilian that the Decepticons want?"

Her smile gone she sighed," Yup, don't ask me why though. I'm just as clueless as everyone else."

"Hm, there goes my theory on Megatron having a thing for Sam. Well, it doesn't matter. Me and the others will keep you safe as long as possible." Tools had mumbled the first bit then had finished sounding completely confident and put an arm around Roxie's shoulders.

"Hearing that from the guy that just ran into a wall I feel so safe." The sarcastic remark was met with a dead pan expression from Tools that made Roxie giggle."Sorry, couldn't resist. I trust the Autobots and the soldiers here with my life. Will and Ironhide have already saved me once. Enough about the gloomy stuff. Ratchet says you're the guy to talk to for blue print paper and a quiet desk to work at."

Tools' eyes seemed to take on a sparkle at the mention of blue print paper and a grin spread outright when she asked about a desk," Milady you have indeed asked the right man. I just so happen to have an extra desk and plenty of blue print paper in my work room. Might I enquire as to why you need them?"

"Just a small birthday project. Can we go now? I don't want to be in plain sight for Galloway to see." Tools felt the despise Roxie felt for the liaison just from her saying his name. Nodding he led her back to his work room while asking her questions to get to know her better. He'd laughed when she'd stumbled when he told her he was 23, Roxie thought he was at least 28.

The more they talked the more Tools felt drawn to Roxie. She radiated an inner strength that even some of the more weathered soldiers didn't have. She also seemed to be immune to his charms. Any other female would be flirting with him non stop, which was a huge disappointment to him. In Ironhide's words, "If you don't have to fight for the femme's affection then the affection you do get is shallow and short lived." To this day Chromia still teased him, which just made Ironhide want her more. From what she had said earlier about being a girl's perfect boyfriend and their attitude she wasn't going to fall for a guy just for his looks. Putting all this together and Tools found himself in the company of the girl he'd always wanted.

Getting to the door Tools remembered the state he'd left it in, stepping in front of Roxie to block the door he smiled sheepishly," Sorry, but wait out here for a second. I just want to clean it up a bit."

"Unless you've got porn laying around I don't mind the mess, I've already been in there remember?" Roxie found it amusing that he was acting like a pre-teen that refused to have any female company come over until it looked perfect for the right impression.

"Oh...Good point. Well then, mi casa is su casa. Please take a seat while I clean all my stuff off the spare desk, all I ask is that you don't touch anything that looks like a weapon. The last thing I need is to be put in the brig for the rest of my life for letting you come to harm on the base." Tools talked and cleaned at the same time, Roxie half listened as she looked over her bike again.

The desk clean and blue print paper with white pencils were all set. He turned around and found Roxie running a hand down the seat of her bike. Going up next to her he told her kindly," I could tell that you took really good care of it before the accident, and that little compartment was very well done. Hope you don't mind, but I added a few things of my own."

Her hand stopped and Roxie turned to Tools with a look that said, ' They better be good additions.' Taking that as his cue to continue he pointed to the right handle," There's a cap covering the end of the handle, underneath is a toggle switch. When it's flicked to the left a collection of caldrops will be released behind you. When its flicked to the right it gives the engine a burst of nitrous. Both things I thought might come in handy if you're being pursued by humans or Decepticons. What do you think?"

"I can tell you right now my dad would be chasing after you with a crowbar demanding you remove the nitrous. As for myself I think you knew just what a girl needed. And I see I'm all set to get started on my work. Thanks." Roxie gave Tools another smile that made his heart skip what felt like two beats. She walked around him and sat down at the desk. Tools watched as she flattened out the paper and began to disassemble a small metal device.

He waited another second then made up his mind and left. His first stop would be to see Optimus Prime or Will to let them know he wasn't going home that weekend. If he found Optimus instead of Will then his next step would be to find Major Lennox. Roxie was now his enemy in a battle of romantic wits, if he was going to win he was going to need information first.

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**P.S. To any of you readers interested in helping me chose a new username I still have the poll up until tomorrow morning!**

**P.S.S. Don't forget to check out the fanart done by Ironaft30, you won't be disappointed when you get a look, all links are on my profile!  
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	12. Lost and Lonesome

**J: That's right, I'm that awesome. I'm giving you yet another decent lengthed chapter the day right after posting the last chapter. Gotta love the inability to sleep sometimes! This morning I closed down the poll, so you may or may not have noticed that my username has been changed in order to reflect the success of this fanfiction which has reached 90 REVIEWS! As always I must give...  
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**THANKS TO: Uncertain-Angel **(Teehee, I couldn't resist running with the joke title.) **XxBlackEaglexX **(You were the first to say you liked Tools, and so I thank you for starting the love for him on behalf of Ironaft30 :3) **Ironaft30 **(:P I'll take some of those wire and cable combinations than a substance that would eat away at my insides xD) **Supergirlprime **(More love for Tools :3 And I'm doing my best to keep them in character.) **Ultimateanime12 **(Lol, the rest of the song immediately started playing in my head after reading that line xD) **Standout4Christ **(I have nothing against human/Cybertronian pairings, I just felt a human companion would be better for Roxie.) **LynxbyLynx **(Thank you for your lengthy review! And sorry for the lack of Decepticon action, I'm still working on how to slip those moments in. Maybe in the next chapter?) **qtgirl33 **(I don't know if you noticed but your review had a rhyme to it xD) **DemontaDark **(Lol, I am glad that you accept him despite his lack of emoness.) **Latina Shewolf **(If Tools could he most likely would have resorted to asking Sarah, but for now he stuck with talking to Will and Ironhide. I came up with their first meeting by having random discussions with Ironaft30 on facebook believe it or not.) **Psyconinja7 **(Good person how do you know of this fine male specimen? "Suspicious look" Have you been reading mine and Ironaft30's convos some how? Hm? Hmm? Hmmmm? LOL) **Tailsdoll123 **(Lol, no. The proper answer to your question can be found in the first paragraph.)

**DISCLAIMER: TRANSFORMERS BELONGS TO HASBRO. TOOLS BELONGS TO IRONAFT30. ROXANNE BELONGS TO ME!**

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Chapter Eleven – Lost and Lonesome**

Roxie barely budged from the desk in Tools' work room that day. She would take the occasional break when Tools came in and bugged her into getting something to eat with him. She would then go right back to work, it kept her mind off two things she really didn't want to think about. One of them was the possibility of Galloway deciding to barge into Tools' room out of curiosity or to get his hands on the weaponry Tools had laying about. Every time her mind drifted to that happening it continued on to all the possible outcomes until she had to calm herself down since she'd started shaking. The second thought was a more pleasing one, it was the repetitive thought of how cute Gregory Harper was. She would to be blond and/or stupid not to find him attractive, however she didn't want to go down that road again already. Joey's betrayal still lingered like a small cavity that wasn't getting any bigger. She wasn't going to go anti-romance and stop dating entirely, but she wasn't looking for a new boyfriend just yet.

"Ah! It's done! Now I need to get the materials...What time is it?" Getting up Roxie stretched and cracked her back. Looking over at the big metal block that showed the time she found it to be after 5pm. "Okay, I'm starving enough to risk the mess hall run. Then I'll go hide outside somewhere." Roxie checked that her green converse were tied up tight and did a couple of stretches to prevent cramping.

She poked her head out the door to check for approaching or retreating suits. The coast clear she high tailed it down the hall until she got to the main area, ducking behind a parked jeep she did a quick sweep over. There was a group of people but no one she recognized, including the man she was trying to avoid. Moving quietly and cautiously Roxie made her way to the other side of the hangar, the soldiers she had spotted saw her and watched with amused interest as she crept along like a criminal. Almost all the soldiers by this point knew of the civilian staying on base that had an actual phobia of Galloway.

Roxie ignored the snickers she could hear and continued her slow and cautious movements. Getting to the other hallway took longer than should have but she felt it was the smart thing to do. Within the enclosed space Roxie took off running again. At the mess hall she sighed in relief, with it filled with men and women it would be impossible for Galloway to tell her apart from the soldiers. Will, Epps, and Tools saw her and waved her over. Her tray filled with Kraft Dinner, carrots and celery she sat down saying," It's good to be around people again. What happened today?"

"Let's see, Sideswipe and Sunstreaker were let out of the brig. Skids and Mudflap got put into the brig. The triplets managed to break another piece of their obstacle course, and Ironhide avoided Ratchet. Just a typical day." Tools listed all these things off and enjoyed the smile and giggles that Roxie made imagining all this.

Swallowing a piece of carrot she asked," What about Optimus and Jolt?"

"The big bot was holed up in his quarters hiding from Galloway so he didn't have to listen to the complaints about all the pranks that he's suffered through. As for Jolt, no idea. After he did the obstacle course he went off by himself. No one but Ratchet and Optimus really know what the guy does." Will explained this and watched Roxie get a thoughtful look on her face. Tools saw the look too but interpreted it as a scheming expression, a look only another trouble maker could recognize.

"What have you been doing all day locked up in Tools' disaster room?" Epps and Tools had been speculating on it all day instead of actually asking Will who knew.

"I've been making a design for Annabelle's birthday present... Mini Hide! What happened to Mini Hide during the attack Will?" The little black bicycle had completely slipped her mind from the moment Cyclonus had shown up. Ironhide had launched them out of his cab but she never saw him drop the bike.

Will's face was a little more grim when he replied in a bemused tone," It didn't escape undamaged. One of the handles got bent and one of the training wheels was broken off. Oddly enough Annabelle still loved it, she said it made sense that Ironhide's little sister would have battle wounds too. We're still getting it fixed since it's not safe for her to ride." Epps and Tools had raised eyebrows while Roxie tried not to laugh with her mouth full of Kraft Dinner.

Will pat her on the back to help clear her throat, able to breathe again she laughed," Any other little girl that would get a busted up bike would have thrown a temper tantrum. How long has she been around the Autobots for?"

"Her whole life, but her and Sarah don't know everything. The less a civilian knows the safer they are from the Decepticons." Will told her this completely serious. It was his way of telling her that even though she didn't know why they were originally after her the Decepticons had another reason to hurt her. Tools and Epps gave Roxie a sympathetic look, like them she had been brought into danger unintentionally. Epps and Will had been part of the war from the very beginning when it first started on Earth, Tools had been brought in through a chance encounter with an injured Ratchet, and Roxie for a reason no one knew of.

Her appetite satisfied Roxie ate her last two pieces of celery, getting up she asked the guys," I'm bored of hiding inside. Do you know where Galloway is? I can use his position to find a new hiding place outside."

"Last time I saw the afthole he was in the common area looking for Optimus. Your best bet would be the beach. We keep a couple of lawn chairs out there for the guys that need a breather." Tools moodily took a big bite out of his KD to show his thoughts towards the liaison still being on base.

"Afthole? That the Cybertronian version of asshole?" Roxie had paused at hearing the new swear word.

"Aft is their way of saying ass. Slag can be taken as crap or shit,frag you can guess, and glitch is the same as bitch. That's what we've figured out anyways, they've never told us what they actually mean." Tools loved showing and telling his knowledge of the Cybertronians they worked with. Some of the soldiers had become accustomed to hearing and using these swears themselves.

At the mention of her chosen last name being a swear word Roxie wanted to laugh, instead she held it in and prayed she could find a good opportunity to use the knowledge for...comedic purposes."Thanks for the lesson, I'll keep it in mind next time I want to piss off an Autobot or Decepticon. Later boys, don't forget to eat your veggies!" The boys snorted at the veggie remark and watched her walk away.

Tools kept watching, a rather dirty smile betraying that he was appreciating the back view just as much as the front. He only stopped when Will flicked a piece of carrot at his head," What? Can't a guy watch a lady walk away?"

"Not if he looks ready to start drooling while he does. If you want to get all lovey dovey about Roxie do it in private, I like her too much to watch you eye rape her." Will wasn't surprised that Roxie drew the mens' attention. She was young, attractive, and now single. Add on the fact that a good portion of the men were female deprived and it was impossible for them not to be distracted as she walked by. It did come as a surprise when Tools sought him out earlier that day to ask questions about her. The guy never showed much interest in the women that tended to flirt with him on their off time, and there were a lot of women that did that. Will had even overheard the twins teasing Tools about being voted the prettiest man on base by the women.

"Yea man, if you looked any creepier watching that girl I'd think you'd gone stalker or something." Epps added this while waving a piece of celery in Tools' face.

Making a face at the two guys he considered his closest friends Tools told them grumpily," Fine, see if I ever ask you guys for help with a woman again. I'll chase after her until she hooks up with another guy, then I'll become so depressed about losing her I'll hang myself. Then you two can suffer with the guilt knowing it was your fault from dissuading me from asking advice."

"Oh stop being a drama queen. I already gave you advice this morning. Leave her along for a while, she's still getting over that afthole. If the triplets, Chromia especially, catch you making that face you'd better run. Ironhide said Chromia really likes Roxie and would help her anyway she can." With this last warning Will got up and left to go find Optimus or distract Galloway away from the beach.

Will hadn't included the beach in the tour since he was limited on time and probably didn't think it would be difficult for her to find. For a normal person finding the beach would be no problem, for Roxie who was born without a sense of direction, it was one of the most frustrating things she'd done all day. First she tried just walking straight until she would stop walking on tarmac and hit the sand. The tarmac seemed to go on forever, so she changed directions and went towards the nearest collection of trees she saw. This led her off the tarmac and into a dense never ending forest. Starting to get worried for ever getting back to the base she immediately started to back track the way she thought she had come. This put her at the beach, but she saw no chairs or any sign that other people had visited the place.

Giving up she'd gone down to the water and sat on the sand where the water didn't reach and extended her bare feet into the cooling tide. Watching the sun set and the light dim another memory came to the fore front of her mind.

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_She was in her little forest again, her hair was fully grown to the middle of her back in two long pony tails. At the age of 13 she was in a girly phase. She wore a pink dress meant for the summer that ended half way down her thighs. A small amount of skin showed before being covered by her magenta thigh length socks. Roxie had always come to these trees when she wanted to talk and have no one listen to her every word. In the forest she couldn't hear the constant sounds of the city with all their electronic devices. Headaches were a constant occurrence to the point where she'd become immune to all the medication meant to get rid of them._

_ An old tree stump that had been naturally made by a lightning strike acted as her throne where she could sit and listen to nothing but the wild life instead of the pitches, screeches and whines of cell phones, mp3 players, and cars. Leaning back against the jagged scratchy tree bark Roxie watched the sky fade from yellow, to a bright orange, light pink, rich purple and finally the beautiful navy of night with the stars and moon. "Roxanne, I thought I might find you here. How was the sunset today?"_

_ She'd been so engrossed in watching the sky she hadn't heard her father come up and lean against the outside of the tree stump. Her eyes still focused on the stars and rising moon she replied," The same as always Dad, it begins in glory and ends in peace."_

_ "You're so poetic, just like your mother was. If she was with us she'd sing a song to match your words." Richard craned his neck to see the small smile and glittering tears in Roxanne's eyes. Today was Roxanne's birthday, and the day of her mother's death. Since she was old enough to understand death Roxanne had refused to have birthday parties, instead she asking that they have a small cake with always one black candle in the middle. When Roxanne would blow out the candles she wouldn't make a wish, she would always say," I love you Mom." The cake eaten and the gifts opened the house would return to normal. At the same time every year, no matter what the weather Roxanne would go out to the woods that were close to their house and watch the sunset to cry in peace away from the people that wouldn't understand or accept her._

_ Reaching into his coat Richard removed a small metal case that looked like it could hold glasses. Holding it up for his daughter to see he told her," Your mother loved to sing and dance to music. I know you do as well, that's why I made you this. It's a cellplayer. It plus into your hearing mufflers to turn them into headphones. I'll explain the other function another time. For now why don't you try out the mp3 player. I've put a song on it already."_

_ Roxie reached down and took the metal case, opening it she found a completely metal device that looked exactly like an mp3 player. Rubbing the tears from her eyes she pulled on the little metal stub that stuck out of the player and saw that it pulled out a wire. Locating the audio jack on her hearing mufflers that her dad had mysteriously added the other night she plugged in the wire and saw the device's display screen light up. She hit play and listened._

_ There came only silence for three seconds then the sound of a recorder, a voice she'd never heard before but still knew came on," My baby girl, I know that you will be the light of our life and the ball of warmth that will never flicker. To you Roxanne Rose I give you the gift of song. It's a song of no words because words aren't needed. Listen closely sweetie." The woman's words faded and then turned into a melody made only of humming. Just as the woman had said words weren't needed, the hummed tune was a beautiful lullaby all on its own. When the humming stopped the woman spoke again," Roxanne Rose Evans, I pray for you that day will never come when you are alone. I pray that there will always be someone for you to go to for a warm embrace and a few kind words. If you are ever alone all you must do is hum this lullaby and I will come to you. I will come to your side and love you." The recording ended and Roxie felt the tears she had been crying the whole time._

_ Pulling the wire out to turn off the device she tucked it back in its case and jumped down from her throne. Going into her father's arms she whispered," Mom has a beautiful voice Dad. Thank you."_

_ "Happy birthday Roxanne."_

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Drifting out of the memory Roxie blinked away her tears and looked to the star speckled sky. The memory had felt like seconds but minutes had gone by, feeling that her legs had fallen asleep from the lack of use and the continuous barrage of cold water she groaned. Doing her best not cry out from the pins and needles she used her arms to pull herself backwards away from the water to then lay down on the sand.

"You shouldn't be out here on your own." Roxie's heart stopped for a second until her hearing finally focused. Craning her head back so she got more sand in her hair but a better look behind her she found Jolt standing at the tree line with an expressionless face.

"I didn't have much choice in the matter since I got lost. But now I'm not on my own now am I?" She had to add that last bit with a smile just to see Jolt frown since it was better than no emotion.

Stepping closer to make sure the human could see how unamused he was Jolt told the girl," Be that as it may you still need to head back. Galloway has long since left and now everyone is looking for you."

Sitting up and spinning herself around to face the blue bot she asked," Looking for me as in 'I'm in trouble looking for me?' Or looking for me as in, 'We're worried sick but really shouldn't be looking for me?'"

Jolt didn't expect the question so said nothing. Roxie took his silence to be the 'trouble' option and dramatically sighed," Okay, give me a second for my legs to get circulation again then we can be on our merry way. And yes you will have to help me get back to base or else I'll just get lost again." Jolt had made an expression showing his dislike of her using 'we' when talking about leaving.

"It's an island. A small mass of land with the majority of it covered in buildings. How can you get lost?" The possibility of someone, even of her size, getting lost on a tiny island computed to be highly unlikely in his processor. Yet the human hadn't lied about getting lost, his medic sensors would have picked up on it. _'So she's one of those humans that manage to do something even it its against the odds. At least she seems to have more intelligence than Samuel.' _He thought this while Roxie slowly, with many winces and cringes, got up.

Even in the dark Jolt made out the healing scabs and bruises on the right side of her body. Ratchet had shown him the scans but he hadn't bothered to keep them in his memory since he hadn't been the one to perform the scans and inspection of the patient. Roxie saw the bot eyeing her injuries and told herself to ask Ratchet why the Autobots seemed to zero in on wounds first and foremost. "To answer your question: because I haven't been here long enough to learn landmarks and paths. And if you really must you may go scan happy this once, but only if you help me get back to the base." She immediately had to grit her teeth due to Jolt scanning her at full power. She guessed the ones that Ratchet and Ironhide had done before were shallow and told them only what she really needed. The scan that Jolt did would tell him everything down to her blood cell count she assumed.

When the noise stopped she asked in a tight restrained voice," Happy?"

"Nope, but it will suffice. Come on femme, or do I need to carry you?" The question was clearly meant to be a quip at her getting lost. Roxie brushed it off by making shooing motions with her hands.

Jolt went back to being emotionless and led the way with his sensors locked on Roxie the whole time to make sure she didn't get lost in the darkness. As they walked Jolt thought back to how he'd even found the femme.

As was his routine Jolt had gone into the denser part of the island's vegetation to search for any plants that could be used for herbal remedies. In his processor he believed that using nature was a wiser choice for healing than all the chemical concoctions most of the humans put into their body. It made sense as to why Earth had so much vegetation in the first place. A planet wouldn't grow plants that were edible unless they were meant to be used in some shape or form for consumption. As most of his searches went however there was little to be found due to the soil composition and the constantly warm climate. As the sun began to set he decided to head back to base to relieve Ratchet for a few Earth hours so he could recharge. He'd taken only a couple of steps when his audio receptors had picked up on something. A faint noise that was clearly being made by a human but wasn't words. Going towards the noise to identify it better he came out of the trees to find the human designated Roxanne Glitch, the femme that had argued with him on when it was right to scan patients and had then apologized later. She was suppose to have acute hearing but she gave no indication that she had heard him. She faced the ocean and continued to create the noise he had heard, only now he heard it for what it was. She was humming a song that was soft, soothing and peaceful, a song that words could never fit too. A song he found himself recording for a reason he couldn't understand. Right before she stopped she began to cry without realizing she was. At that point Ratchet had commed him to report her absence.

He still didn't know why he'd recorded the song, he did find it soothing to the audio receptors in comparison to the other nonsense the humans called music. But something about the song had made his spark pulse with a hollow feeling. He focused on that feeling and searched his processor's memory for any other time he'd felt the strange pulse. When he found one other time he nearly stopped mid-step. The hollow pulse had hit his spark once before, back to the time that he had watched his beloved home planet shrink in the distance. Jolt had yearned to go home, his spark had pulsed with a hollow sensation for the need to go home. The song that Roxanne had been humming had made him home sick. _'I should speak to Ratchet about this.'_

"Hey Jolt, you okay?" Roxie was getting worried about her guide, he hadn't said anything for the past two minutes and had knocked over two trees without missing a single step.

Jolt stopped at the question and looked back at the human femme he had momentarily forgotten about. "I'm fine femme, why do you ask?"

"Because you've been completely quiet which is a sign that someone is thinking and you've knocked two trees over like they were made of cards which means you probably didn't even notice what you were doing. That is why I'm asking." Jolt raised an optic ridge but could not find fault in the logic she presented. _'Definitely much more intelligent than Samuel Witwicky.' _

Continuing on he told her over his shoulder," Yes I was thinking but nothing that would concern you. There, we're back. Go report to Ratchet, Chromia and Major Lennox."

Hands on her hips Roxie asked haughtily,"Since when did I become a soldier that could be ordered around?"

"Since the day you arrived. Just because you don't wear a uniform doesn't mean you can do as you please. If you're told to do something by Major Lennox, Chief Master Epps, Optimus Prime, Ironhide, Ratchet or myself you do it. It's how we keep order here. You learn it, leave it or get brigged. I suggest you go with the first option." Jolt had been rather civil to Roxie up to that point. When she'd asked her question, though it wasn't meant to be taken seriously, Jolt had lost his patience. His words were cold and crisp causing Roxie to take a step back from the bite of them. Nothing more to say Jolt walked off to the obstacle course to vent out his emotions.

Heading towards the med bay Roxie watched the blue Autobot walk, even though he had snapped at her she didn't feel any resentment towards him. From what she understood the Autobots and Decepticons had been at war with each other for a very long time. He'd been through enough battle field horror to warrant the attitude he'd developed. _'Maybe Ratchet will tell me more about Jolt. If he isn't too angry at me.' _ This in mind Roxie picked up her pace to see the agitated with worry medic bot.


	13. Hide From The Horrors

**J: I am on a serious updating roll! All your reviews are great motivators, as well as when I see that more people add it to their watch and favorites :3 This week has been my most progressive for updates probably because it's my reading week, so starting next week the updates won't be coming up as often, just a warning. AND WE'VE HIT OVER A 100 REVIEWS! WHOOP!  
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**THANKS TO: LynxbyLynx **(Yup, your Decepticons are in here as promised.) **Ultimateanime12 **(I know, but I couldn't remember they more in depth meanings, so the swears won't be used heavily unless by Autobots.) **Supergirlprime **(Lol, that might come in later on. I've got so many other ideas and I really want to get in more action and such that I don't know where to put in new stuff sometimes ahha.) **Undead Artist **(I'm thrilled to hear you say so :3 As for your affection for secrets you might want to keep an eye out for the next chapter in particular for a big brain blower xD) **Standout4Christ **(Lol, Tools is a really persistent man too xD) **XxBlackEaglexX **(At some point I will get in the last name swear word realization, it's just TOO precious not to use!) **DemontaDark **(Yes, whenever there is a femme in the area much eye raping is done, both on the human and bots side xD) **ironaft30 **(I am sorry for your mum's passing :( ) **Tailsdoll123 **(As you will read you are indeed correct about Jolt :D) **Latine Shewolf AKA 100TH REVIEWER **(Congrats on being number 100! I've already sent you another message after receiving your review. But in answer, yes Tools would be the most depressed man on Earth if anyone else got to Roxie. As for Mini Hide, I needed to make a gift that would make Annabelle go super happy even if it got slightly destroyed lol.) **At the Heart of the Storm **(Awesome for reviewing as usual :D) **Frenzi99 **(You're ultra lengthy review made my day :D And thank you for all the tips and info, especially about the Sueing and Jolt, I didn't know enough about him so I went with Faecat's outline but made him a bit more RAWRISH xD)

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN TRANSFORMERS! TOOLS BELONGS TO IRONAFT30! ROXANNE BELONGS TO ME!**

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Chapter Twelve -Hide From The Horrors**

As Roxie had predicted Ratchet, Will and Chromia were livid from worry. Roxie had to fight back hysteric laughter when Sunstreaker had stopped in in the middle of her lecture and Ratchet had chased him out by throwing a massive wrench at his head. Ratchet had caught a glimpse of a smile and lectured her even more, Will had given her a small lecture about common sense in unfamiliar territory and Chromia had told her that next time she wanted to go off exploring she should take her or one of her sisters to go with her. As punishment Roxie was sent to her shared quarters for the night. On her way to the room she came across Tools who looked absolutely relieved to see her, he'd offered to walk with her and she declined saying," Just because I'm still young enough to get grounded, didn't mean she wasn't a big enough girl to walk to her room by herself." She'd left Tools laughing but still a little disappointed.

All the fresh air and the emotional trip down memory lane had worn Roxie out enough to put her to sleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. She vaguely remembered the triplets coming in and scanning her before going to sleep themselves. Dreams of her mother and father let her sleep peacefully for the remainder of the night.

The next morning Roxie was pleased to find herself awake before the triplets, it only lasted a few seconds before they woke up from the sound of her movements. Transforming to stretch Arcee greeted," Morning Rebel, how was your recharge?"

"I slept pretty good thanks. And that's a new name, when did I earn that title?" Roxie saw the smile from their face plates and got a little worried.

"Jolt was on the obstacle course late last night, we asked him what's got his circuits in a twist and his response was ' the little red haired femme is a ticking time rebel.' What did you say or do to earn that kind of impression from him Roxie?" Flareup explained all this with a slightly bigger smile than the other two. It was the first time Roxie had seen such an adoring smile on the femme and inwardly made a note of it.

Using her hands to finger comb her hair in front of the small mirror they'd put up for her Roxie replied," Probably from when he told me to go 'report' to Ratchet, Will and Chromia and I asked when I'd become a soldier that could be ordered around. His response was really cold even though I wasn't even being serious when I asked." The triplets had lost their smiles when she explained, Roxie got the feeling that she'd said something wrong.

Rolling closer to Roxie Flareup told her softly," When it comes to authority is very strict. Back on Cybertron something happened that made Jolt put authority on the top of his list. In the future you might want to keep any comments about orders to yourself."

"I won't ask more about it but I'll take your words to heart. Galloway is suppose to leave today right, when will that be?" Roxie made sure to remember Flareup's words for future encounters with Jolt, but to also ask about when she got a minute or two alone with Ratchet.

Smiling once more Arcee answered," The pit spawned human leaves at one. We all go and wave him off with big smiles since it bothers him." The triplets all giggled at all the times that Galloway had scowled out the window at all the happy soldiers and Cybertronians.

"Excellent. What should I do to hide until he's gone then?" Roxie had finished getting dressed in a pair of jeans, her robot shirt and her jean jacket over top.

At the question the triplets exchanged a look that Roxie could only define as 'I told you so.' Without warning they lunged forward and grabbed Roxie. Holding her above their heads they zipped out of their room, out of the second floor and out of the main hangar. On their way they passed Optimus and Will who stopped mid conversation to watch them go by. Pointing after the collection of females Will asked," Where are they taking Roxie?"

Optimus asked the triplets and told him their answer," Arcee and Flareup want to see Roxanne's capabilities on their obstacle course."

"WHAT? They will do no such thing or I'll weld their afts to the brig bars!" Ratchet had just stepped out of the med bay to give Optimus the weekly report when he'd heard the question and answer. He dropped the data pad altogether and went stomping after them. Will and Optimus followed after to make sure Ratchet didn't get too wrench happy.

Finally back on her feet Roxie took in her surroundings. Stretched out in front of her was a runway that made sharp turns, was covered in ramps and had guns ranged on the sides. A very large smile spreading across her face Roxie asked," Really? You're really going to let me run it?"

"Only on the first setting. The guns won't fir at you. Chromia says you've got some sweet moves on a bike. We want to see it with our own optics." Arcee pointed behind Roxie to where her bike and helmet were.

"I accept your challenge." Without a second thought Roxie ran over to her bike, threw on her helmet and revved her engine. Just as she took off Ratchet, Optimus and Will came around the corner.

"You three better hope she doesn't get hurt, or you'll be in the brig longer than either set of twins ever has." Ratchet's threat fell on deaf audio receptors as everyone watched the girl take on the triplet's obstacle course.

Free to go at an exhilarating speed Roxie let her past street chases play into her mind. Each turn was made effectively with no loss of speed, including a sharp u-turn. When the first ramp came into view she hit the 110mph mark. Up in the air Roxie felt incredible, everything left her mind right up until her tires touched down again. On the next turn she was nearly around the corner when a small explosion went off right behind her. She glanced behind her and saw a perfect hole in the tarmac with scorch marks around the rim.

By this time almost all of the Autobots had come to watch as well as Tools and Epps. When the explosion went off Tools felt his heart drop, turning to the triplets who looked a little worried he asked," I thought you said it was put on the first setting?"

"It is, but even on the first setting the land mines work." Ironhide had answered since the triplets were completely focused on Roxie, revving up in case they needed to go help her at a moment's notice. Ironhide had come out to the obstacle course to watch Chromia, he was more than surprised to find them as well as Ratchet, Optimus, Will, Epps and Tools watching someone else on the course. Seeing the familiar bike he just about demanded why they were letting an untrained civilian do something so dangerous. He'd stopped himself when Roxie had made a perfect u-turn and flown off the ramp to keep going.

"If she survives you might want to think of making a level 0 setting so the land mines don't go off!" Tools yelled this when two more mines went off a second after Roxie had gone over them. Like all the others watching he had to admit she was handling herself pretty well, but that didn't stop his heart from having minor panic attacks whenever she got to another turn and another mine went off.

"Relax Tools, the course is finished once she gets over the last ramp and goes over the three consecutive land mines." Sideswipe said all this casually. Him and Sunstreaker had joined the spectators right at the point where the first land mine went off, though Sunstreaker made sure to keep himself a ways from the group since there were humans.

"Three? Consecutive?" Tools was on the brink of ripping his hair out. If she survived the ramp and mines he was going to dismantle her bike's engine and hide all the parts. He'd fixed up her bike to keep her safe, not so she could go driving into death!

The last ramp gave Roxie just as much adrenaline as the last two, only more since another explosion had gone off right before she got into the air. Knowing what to look for she spotted the three holes that were close together and veered to the left of them, what everyone, Autobots included, had forgotten about was the surprise mine that Skids and Mudflap had planted on either side of the three mines as a way to get back at Arcee for a prank she had pulled on them. It went off before the back tire could get over it sending the bike flipping forward rear end first and Roxie went flying to land on her back.

Ratchet, Chromia, Ironhide, Will and Tools took off the second the explosion went off. Roxie sat up just as they reached her, pulling off her helmet to show she still had her smile with flushed cheeks she asked," What was my time? Can I do it again?"

Will and Tools sighed in relief and helped her get up. "You will not be doing the course again young lady. From here on I'm prohibiting any humans from using this course. Am I clear?" Ratchet crossed his arms and glared down at Roxie and Chromia.

"Fine Dr. Killjoy, I won't run this obstacle course again. Please stop scanning me, my batteries are running low so I can hear that horrible sound even louder." Ratchet and Ironhide had scanned Roxie at the same time to make sure she hadn't sustained any damage besides the slight bruising she was going to get on her back.

Flareup, Arcee and Optimus joined them looking pleased that she wasn't hurt. "If you didn't catch that last land mind you would have been two second off from Chromia's time when she does the course on the third setting." This got another glare from Ratchet because Flareup was more or less encouraging her.

"I take it that's a good thing?"

"Good? Girl, you put Tools, Lennox and Epps to shame." Sideswipe had come over as well leaving his twin to go their obstacle course. (The triplets had their own since they needed to work on manuevering and speed to keep themselves alive.) The three men named scowled up at Sideswipe but didn't deny it. They'd each done the obstacle course, even on the second setting, but hadn't done or even looked that good doing it.

Smiling ear to ear at the praise Roxie felt great, then she spotted a figure approaching them and ran behind Ironhide's foot to hide. Having seen that reaction before they all turned around to create a wall between the liaison and Roxie was a curled up little ball. Reaching them Theodore Galloway asked," Is something of importance happening that warranted everyone to meet out here?"

"No, can't a few bots and people watch another bot go about their training?" Tools was the one to ask in a snappish tone. Him and Galloway were never going to be civil towards each other so didn't bother to try.

Galloway gave Tools a sour look but didn't bother to give him much attention than that. "Optimus, I wish to speak to you in private concerning a few incidents concerning your...men."

Optimus groaned inwardly and felt sympathy over the . He sucked it up and reminded himself of what the man had done to deserve the pranks, even the one Sideswipe and Sunstreaker had done to screw up the helicopter navigation system. "Very well Galloway, lead on." Pleased he could finally complain about the mistreatment he's been getting since he'd arrived Galloway walked back towards the main hangar with Optimus behind him, kinda.

Will and Tools waited until Galloway was around the corner then went over to where Roxie sat in her little ball. Crouching down Will put a hand on her back," It's okay, he's gone. Maybe you should work more on Annabelle's present until he leaves."

Roxie nodded in agreement and went with Tools back to his work room."There has to be a way to get rid of Galloway. At this rate the thought of getting caught by Galloway will scare her more than getting caught by the Decepticons."

Ironhide had to fight the urge to go after Galloway and make his hologram a reality. Roxie's escalated heart rate and shallow breathing had reminded him how much she feared the stupid man even with all of them present.

"Both Optimus and myself have sent messages to the president requesting a new liaison but we haven't heard anything back from him. At least he's leaving today and Roxie can have a few days to breathe in peace." Will agreed with Ironhide, Roxie would only be able to handle so many close encounters with Galloway before asking to be brought back to the main land. They wanted Roxie to feel as a guest and not a prisoner, if she asked to leave Optimus wouldn't refuse her. And he knew he couldn't refuse her either.

In Tools' work room Roxie gave Tools a list of all the materials she would need as well as the equipment. She was pleased when Tools pointed out all the equipment was already there and that he would only need to ask Ratchet for two of the materials. Everything else on the list was already in the room. Once Tools came back with the materials she got to work for the next five hours.

Wiping sweat from her forehead Roxie looked down at her handiwork. From the work she'd done that morning she had finished the metal encasement for the mp3 player, which she'd shaped into a small truck closely resembling Ironhide. Proud of the progress she cleared it all up and stored it away in a box that she wrote 'TOUCH AND I KILL' on the outside of. The chunky clock reading one she let out a massive sigh of relief, if Galloway wasn't gone then he should be on his way to leaving, thus making the mess hall absolutely safe.

With a skip in her step Roxie carelessly walked out of the room and ventured down the hall.

"Who are you and what are you doing here?" Every muscle, every cell of blood and her heart froze. If she had checked the hall first she would have spotted him and locked herself in the room. Instead she had been an idiot and had walked right into his path.

Fear took over her mind and body entirely, she ran. She ran like her had back in the forest to get away from her father and the doctors. He was behind her yelling," STOP! SOMEBODY STOP THAT CIVILIAN!" His voice made her run faster to the point where she knew if she tripped she would be royally screwed.

She got the main area and started looking for anywhere to hide or anyone to help her. A spot of blue to the far back sent her in that direction," Jolt! Please help me!"

Jolt had been in a light recharge when his sensors picked up a frantic heart beat which was quickly followed by Roxie's plea for help. "What is your problem femme?"

"Please let me hide your back seat! I don't want Galloway to find me please!" Roxie had moved to the other side of Jolt so she could crouch down out of plain sight. She heard Galloway exit the hallway, escalating her fear to cause tears.

Jolt didn't understand this irrational fear she had of Director Galloway, yes he was a pompous conniving human slagger that wanted their weapon technology and/or their presence gone from Earth, but nothing to warrant these levels of fear. She was physically shaking with a dangerously elevated heart rate, his medical programming told him to do whatever possible to relieve her of her condition. But it wasn't his programming that made him open his back door and gruffly tell her to get in. It was the hummed melody he had heard yesterday that convinced him to help her. Which was still something he needed to discuss with Ratchet. For all of the evening and most of the night his recharge had been haunted by the song.

Curled up in a ball on the floor of the back seat Roxie whispered over and over," Thank you Jolt."

When Galloway came towards them Jolt tinted his windows so it would be near impossible to see anything in his interior. He stopped in front of Jolt and demanded," Hey you, did you see the civilian girl that came in here?"

" What civilian girl? The only civilian female I know of is Mikeala Banes, and she is not on base. I haven't seen anyone but you, I've been in recharge the whole time." Jolt kept his voice snippy to make it clear he was not interested in the man's presence and wanted to be left alone.

A huff to his voice Galloway pointed at him," If I find out you're letting a civilian stay here without getting government approval there will be consequences." The warning given Galloway went on hid way to get away from the robot infested hellhole he had endured for the past three days.

The stupid human well out of sensor range Jolt turned his attention back to the femme in his interior. Her heart rate had returned to normal and her body had stopped shaking but she was still crying," He's gone femme, you can continue on your way."

Roxie did her best to calm down and stop her tears so she could move. Stumbling out of the back seat Roxie sniffed," Th-thank you Jolt. I really owe you one."

"You owe me nothing femme. You are to be protected from the Decepticons. If you were arrested and removed from here you would be an open target. If I were to let all that happen Ratchet would throw every wrench on base at my helm and any other tools he could get his hands on." Jolt shut his door and began to roll away while grumbling all this.

Feeling a bit more sturdy Roxie ran ahead of the blue bot and deliberately put herself in his path. Giving him a determined scowl she told him in her absolute tone," You can say and think what you want Jolt, but I'm going to repay you some way or other. If Will and Ironhide aren't getting out of it, neither are you." Though he was in his alt-mode Roxie could feel Jolt's own scowl.

They continued the stare down until the sound of voices started to approach. Not wanting to explain what had happened with Galloway and why he was having a staring match with the femme Jolt vented," Fine! You can give me a wash or something. Insufferable femme."

"You got it Jolt, just let me know when." Figuring that Jolt didn't want to explain things she gave a smile and a wave then left for the mess hall.

Ratchet and Ironhide had entered the main hangar just in time to see the smile and wave. Once they judged her to be out of ear shot they approached the younger medic that had changed to his bi-pedal mode. "What was that about Jolt?"

"I just let her know that Galloway had left. Why is she so scared of that piece of human scrap? There's nothing really scary about him." A half truth followed by a diverting question always worked best for those situations and Jolt was an expert at it from his past experiences.

Ratchet and Ironhide exchanged a look. Switching to comm Ironhide asked, _**'How do you not know? She told us the day she woke up.'**_

_** 'If you recall Jolt had left before then.' **_Ratchet pointed out this fact, earning a frown from Jolt at the reminder of his lost argument.

_**'What did she tell you?**_**' **Jolt was starting to get impatient from the lack of answers and from his disturbed recharge.

Knowing that Ironhide wouldn't be able to repeat the incident without adding unnecessary swear words Ratchet supplied the story. Jolt listened and slowly came to understand where the femme's fear had come from. The equivalent to her experience would be a youngling being captured by the Decepticons and just barely escaping before Soundwave could hack into their systems for information. **'**_**To that girl Galloway is Megatron himself. If possible keep him away from her, the girl has endured enough hardship without having one of her worst nightmares come back into her life.' **_Jolt didn't need to know this, he'd already done just that.

_**'And if you ever get the chance give the slagger a good zap in the aft. You could probably get away with it by claiming accidental discharge.' **_Ironhide smiled darkly at the thought of Galloway suffering whenever he sat down on his government empowered aft.

Jolt actually considered doing this but gave no indication of agreement in fear of Ratchet 'reminding' him of Prime's rule on not harming humans. "Oh, and just a heads up. Simmons is back. We haven't told him about Roxanne yet since we don't know if they might have a history as well." Ratchet added this out loud so that any other soldiers walking around would know as well. Simmons wasn't entirely disliked, he was just hard to tolerate sometimes.

Rolling his optics Jolt grumbled," Great. Now all we need is all the other human younglings and we can have a party." Jolt meant his words to be an indirect complaint but instead was taken as an idea from Ratchet.

"That might not be a bad idea. It'll make Roxanne feel more comfortable and we can celebrate Annabelle's birthday." Ratchet muttered this out loud, earning a thoughtful look from Ironhide and plain disbelief from Jolt. Throwing his hands up in defeat Jolt went off to the med bay. The older bots shrugged it off and continued to make plans that were sent along to Optimus for approval.

**-In The Deserted Sands of Los Vegas-**

"Oof!" Cyclonus let out the grunt as he made impact with the old metal wall of the abandoned army bunker they currently resided in.

Starscream paced forward, his face plates pulled back in a snarl." You worthless scrap heap, how hard is it to capture a human? You just had to swoop down and grab her, instead you nearly offline her! Be grateful I'm not Megatron, otherwise you would be nothing but spare parts now!"

"So I got a little carried away! She's still online right? So no harm done. OW!" As Cyclonus talked Starscream's temper had risen.

Lunging forward Starscream took hold of Cyclonus by the throat and pinned him against the wall," You cannot claim that harm wasn't done, you didn't stick around long enough to ensure it! If I didn't need you I would rip off your wings and legs and leave you out in the sand to be buried."

"Starscream, I've gotten more information on the target." Demolisher had entered the room and interrupted just in time to save Cyclonus's throat from being crushed.

Starscream released his hold to drop Cyclonus to the floor," If this information isn't useful you will be joining him Demolisher."

Demolisher, another tank 'Con, gave Cyclonus a glance before reporting," I've managed to find another human that can lead us to our target. And the human authorities also have a warrant out for her capture. If they get her then it's likely the Autobots can't protect her."

"Well done Demolisher. See to it that the humans searching for her are tracked, I want to know the very nanosecond if they get to her first. Give Cyclonus the information on the other fleshy. He will locate and learn what he can about the target. And if he screws this up I'll tear off each and every limb then leave him for Megatron to finish, am I clear?" Starscream had put his hands behind his back to speak as he thought things over. Soundwave had contacted them the day after Cyclonus' failure to inform them that Megatron and his top strategist Thrust was on their way to Earth and would arrive in eight Earth days. There were only four days left until they arrived, if Starscream didn't get his hands on the fleshling femme before then then his whole plan to gain an upper hand on Megatron would be ruined. _'In a situation like this I best make a back up plan. I will not let an opportunity such as this slip past me.' _Starscream's pacing had led him to the only window that looked out into the desert that was blazing from the midday sun.

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**P.S. I am thinking a title change might be in order since it's not entirely going with the plot ahha. Let me know what you think!**

**P.S.S There is now a link on my profile to see Ironaft30's pic called 'Three Deaths of Galloway' It's based off the holographic projections the bots made of Galloway in 'Relocated and Reintroduced' Tell the man you love him when you see it cause I know I did!  
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	14. See Simmons, See Simmons Run

**J: Ello me duckies! Just as I promised in my little News Flash I have provided yet another update. But I must let you know now, this one may be the last update for a few weeks to come. I currently have a lot of work to get cracking on, but do not fret. I may use my free time for work,but I will be using most of my suppose to be class time to be writing, as in, I will go to class and hear what we're talking about, but I'll be writing at the same time. So once all my work is done and gone you can sure to look forward to a lovely bunch of updates :3**

**THANKS TO(including reviews given for the one shot): Thatgirlbehindyou **("Raises eyebrow at Starscream affection" Glad to have made you so happy lol. Don't worry, there will be some spark whispering in future chapters "snicker,giggle,snort" You'll get why I'm trying not to laugh out right i the future xD)

**Supergirlprime **(Sadly no, Galloway needs to stay online for just a bit longer, but don't worry, he'll get his :3 And the mental imagery of Megatron wearing a suit and toupe is quite hysterical xD - Annnd Tools loves that tune by the way, he thanks you for reminding him of it as Roxie is hiding somewhere blushing lol.)

**Lightwolfheart **(Are you recovering well? And sorry to give you so much to do, but you know you love it :3) 

**Latina Shewolf **(I'm glad you enjoyed your one shot gift :3 And as for your questions let's see which ones I can answer "scanning" Sadly, the man does not have it in him to actually do anything...yet, give it some time and something might happen ahha. Ironaft30 thanks you for your love of his art, and thank you for your insight on the title :D)

**Ultimateanime12 **(Lol, like he cares, he's a medical officer, he can do whatever he wants cause he fixes them after anyways LOL!) **Standout4Christ **(Your foresight astounds me! Did you hack into my processor some how? Well anyways this chapter should please you then :3 And thank you for the grammar reminders, I still haven't gotten around to looking into a beta ahha. - Yea, it might take a while, but her finding out about him finding out is inevitable lol.)

**Dontgotaclue88 **(And I look forward to any future reviews :3 Keep enjoying if you can!)

**Tailsdoll123 **(Cute? Hm, wasn't aiming for cute but if that's how you saw it then I shall not correct you xD And consider this an early birthday gift from me to you :3 HAPPY BIRTHDAY FROM MYSELF, ROXIE AND TOOLS!)

**J: Thought a change up with the THANKS might be appreciated, shall I keep it this way? As well from today on I'm changing the genre of this and to all you Decepticon fans there will be a showing of them in the NEXT CHAPTER! PLEASE REVIEW, WILL LOVE YOU EVEN IF YOU DON'T BUT WILL LOVE YOU MORE IF YOU DO!**

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Chapter Thirteen - See Simmons, See Simmons Run**

"No more Galloway, no more hiding. Now what should I do?" Roxie was in the mess hall sitting at the same table as Beth, Alice and Tools. Roxie couldn't helo but notice that both of her new female friends constantly glanced in Tools direction, she had a feeling a lot of other females on base did that as well from a distance. If she hadn't promised herself to lay off me for a while she would be among, only not as openly.

"Since you don't have any duties you can do pretty much anything you want. Or you could help us clean dishes. Stupid rotating duties has us both doing mess hall cleaning this week." Alice tore her eyes away from Tools to give Roxie pleading puppy dog eyes.

Making a dead pan expression Roxie replied," I like you, but not enough to sacrifice freedom for pan hands. Any other suggestions that don't include work?"

"If HE ever heard you ask a question like that HE would make you do triple the amount of work to earn your keep." Beth,a woman with a rather dark touch to her words put extra emphasis on the generic noun.

"Which is why HE doesn't know Roxie is on base yet." Tools knew who Beth was talking about and made sure to share his intel on the situation.

"Who is HE you people are refusing to name? He's not another government worker is he?" Roxie did not want to play hide and seek with another suit. Galloway's presence already put her nerves on edge, if there was another she would have to make arrangements to be protected from the Decepticons on some other island.

"HE is-"

"Roxie! Will you come with me? There's a couple of people I want you to meet." Alice had been cut off from revealing the identity of the mystery 'HE' by Will calling out to her from the other side of the mess hall.

"Uh sure Will, I'll get that name from you later." Roxie went over to where Will waited after a quick wave to Beth and Alice. Tools, like the puppy he'd been acting like since that morning, went along with Roxie, depriving the two female soldiers of their eye candy.

Alice watched them leave with a sigh," Why does the prettiest guy have to be so drawn to weird things, people included?"

"At least they make a matching couple with their flame tops. I hear Sunny and Sides have a betting pool going on them getting together and when. I bet together in the next month." Beth pulled out the human sized data pad receipt proving her wager on the bet.

"Oooh! I want in on that action. Be right back, start my sink for me please!" Alice, a woman that loved putting people together, dashed off to find Sideswipe since no one but Tools, Will and Epps could get anywhere near Sunstreaker.

"Who am I meeting?" Roxie asked this for the third time, Will and Tools refused to reply and only smile while leading her on to the communication bridge, somewhere she hadn't been yet.

"Maybe she's a mutant, what if she has two heads? Which one would I talk to?" As they climbed up the stairs Roxie caught some of a male voice.

"Glen, how many Red Bulls did you drink?" A female voice with a heavy Australian accent asked this of the male voice.

Getting to the top Roxie was met by a gorgeous tan, blonde haired young woman not but a few years older than her. Next to her was an African American guy quite on the heavy side in a sports jersey and a can of Red Bull in his hand. A tight smile on her face the blonde stepped forward," Hi, I'm Maggie. You must be Roxanne."

"Yes...It's nice to meet people that don't have a gun strapped to their back. And from what I heard you must be Glen." Roxie shook hands with Maggie and then wit Glen who she was sure was blushing.

"Maggie and Glen are the lead members of our encyrption team. Ratchet invited them and a couple other people he thought you might like to meet. But they won't get here until later this afternoon." Will added this information while Tools went over to Glen and gave him a hug and pat on the back.

"You mean my man Sam and Mikela? What about Leo, is he coming too?" Glen and Maggie had been invited to the main base for the first time in over a month, they hadn't been told why specifically but didn't turn it down either. Both techies loved hanging out with the Autobots whenever they could. They'd thought for sure that the government would have taken away Maggie's job and thrown them both in jail for making her security breach and Glen being a hacker. Instead the secretary of defense gets them put on the NEST encryption team before retiring.

All the young people turned their eyes to the Major, trying not to laugh at the big puppy dog eyes of hope they all had he confirmed the question," All three are going to be getting here by the afternoon. Until then behave, especially you Tools, you know how Mikela gets when she finds you in the brig." Tools nervously laughed while Glen and Maggied snickered, Will ruffled Roxie's hair then went off to do a surprise inspection. No one said he couldn't have fun.

"Who are Sam and Mikela?" Roxie hadn't heard any of the soldiers or the bots mention these names, then again they never mentioned Glen and Maggie either.

"Sam Witwicky and Mikela Banes are two civilians like yourself that have known the bots since they arrived on Earth. Sam attends Princeton University and Mikela works at her dad's autoshop in Tranquility city, so they don't come out here often." A very natural happiness came into Tools' expression when he spoke about Mikela. For some irritating reason Roxie felt a small heart pang of jealousy.

Wanting to shake the feeling Roxie quickly asked," That explains them, but what about you three? How did all of you get brought into the world of the Autobots and Decepticons?"

"That's a really long story to tell while standing. Let's go get comfortable." Maggie hooked arms with Roxie and took the lead to the beach with the lawn chairs. Glen and Tools followed the girls talking about what they'd been doing lately.

Slowing down to put a decent amount of hearing distance between them Glen asked Tools," You dibsed Roxie in front of a witness, right man?"

"What?" Tools stopped at the question.

Tugging him forward to keep moving Glen told Tools," Don't you remember? Last time all of us guys were together we made the Dibs Law. You gotta call dibs on a girl in front of a valid witness or another guy cn make the claim and try and win her man. Bumblebee even recorded us making the Dibs Law."

"Slag, Leo will jump on Roxie the second he sees her. Glen you're my witness. I call dibs on Roxanne Glitch." They had reached the beach by this time and the girls had claimed the two closest chairs for themselves.

"You're lucky I don't like red heads." Glen gave Tools a pat on the arm and plopped down on the sand between the chairs. Maggie had just started to tell Roxie about the attack in Quatar and how that lead to her and Glen getting involved.

Roxie was completely enraptured with the story. No one had told her about the details of Mission City, all she knew was that Megation had gotten free from his frozen state, killed her father and then escaped Sector Seven. Thinking of Sector Seven brough forth one specific detail that Maggie had mentioned in her story that hadn't sunk in. Her voice tart she asked," Did you say Simmons was with you? As in Sector Seven's Agent Seymor Simmons?"

"Y-yea, the guy kept us safe when that crazy little drone they call Frenzy tried to kill us." Glen was getting a bad feeling from the dark look in Roxie's eyes.

Tools noticed not only the dark look but she'd also gone very tense with clenched fists," Do you know where he is or what he's doing now?" Tools was starting to worry, Roxie wasn't sounding like she had when talking about Galloway. _'She's not afraid...She's pissed.'_ Tools' worry changed from Roxie to Simmons.

Maggie didn't know if it was the smartest thing to do but she still answered," We saw him out by the shooting range not long before meeting you." Roxie was off running the second Maggie finished talking, Tools and Glen exchanged a look with Maggie to say she may have done a very bad thing by answering.

Digging into his pocket Tools took out a device that resembled a blue tooth, putting it on his ear he started after Roxie," Never thought I'd need to use this while on base...Ratchet! We might have a situation. Roxie just took off to hunt down Simmons and she looked ready to shed blood."

_**'Roxanne? The same girl that runs and hides at the mere mention of Galloway, is going after Simmons? What did you do to her in the past couple of hours?' **_Ratchet's disbelief couldn't have been more clear if he'd been standing in front of Tools showing it with his face plates.

"I didn't do anything! I think it's another one of those, what did HE do to HER situations. Where is Simmons right now? We should give him some warning." Roxie was still in his sights but she was doing her best to stay out of his reach, Glen and Maggie were following behind just as curious and concerned about what was going on.

_**'Simmons just lef the med bay and was heading out to talk to Ironhide, who is on the training field. Jolt is with them so I'll relay information to him.' **_As Ratchet answered he made his way in the same direction.

_**'Ratchet to Jolt.'**_

_** 'Jolt responding. What's wrong?'**_

_** "It seems Roxie knows Simmons but in a completely different way than Galloway. She's heading for him now, and as much as you don't like him he still needs to be kept safe.'**_

_** 'Understood, though I doubt she could cause him much physical harm.' **_Jolt ended the transmission there and looked to the man that had been doing his best to keep pace with him to the training field. "Simmons, have you ever met or known a femme by the name of Roxanne Glitch?"

The ex-sector seven agent stopped, paled and turned wide eyes up to the medic," Roxanne Glitch, formally known as Roxanne Rose Evans? Yea I know her, but how do you? Her files are entirely classified. Tell me what you know right now!"

"What I know is that she's on her way to see you, and she is apparently very unhappy. How do you know Roxanne?" With the knowledge of Roxie's past involving Galloway he could understand her irrational fear of the man. From Ratchet's words Jolt assumed that Roxie was on her way to more or less maul Simmons, which was just as confusing as to why she acting like this.

"That information isn't important. What's important-" Simmons, much to Jolt's further confusion, took off his long sleeved black button up shirt, as well as his shoes and socks. "Is that she doesn't catch me off - OOF!" Simmons didn't finish his sentence because Roxie had tackled him to the tarmac.

Panting hard Tools stopped not far from what he had to claim to be the most vicious tacle he had ever seen.

Simmons, having prepared for it and not out of breathe, easily got out of the girl's reach and got up on his feet in a defensive stance. "Hey Roxie, long time no see. You're looking great." Roxie had gotten back up, and his voice had weakened at the fierce glare she was giving him.

Tools looked up at Jolt to see if he knew what was going on, Jolt just shook his head, _**'Don't stop them, they obviously need to work it out...And I'm thoroughly enjoying this.' **_Jolt sent this to Tools through the comm receiver on Tools' ear, Tools scowled at the bot to tell him, _'If she gets hurt I'm removing nuts and bolts while you recharge.' _Maggie and Glen shortly caught up panting and out of breathe as well. "Simmons, we are long overdue for a talk."

"Yea, sure, okay. Then let's talk I'm all ears." Simmons opened his arms to show he was unarmed and open to peace. Roxie stalked forward, reached up and grabbed one of his ears causing him to bend down with a pained expression.

"We'll be talking in private. If any of you follow I will do as much damage as I can to him." Roxie announced this to the gathered people and mechs since Ratchet had also joined the group.

Simmons, though his face showed a lot of pain, waved to them in a sign to not worry. The onlookers were of course worried while they watched Simmons get dragged away. They got far enough away that not even Jolt or Ratchet could hear them. But even at that distance they saw Roxie start to swing at Simmons. He dodged three punches then took an upper cut to the solar plexus. He staggered back holding up a finger to wait, oddly enough Roxie waited to start going at him again.

Jolt and Ratchet, with their medic programming, were able to sharpen their optics to see that while Roxie attacked Simmons she talked or even yelled. Over the years they had found it was quite handy to know what people were saying out of hearing range, as a means to fix that most of the Autobots had downloaded lip reading instructions.

Tools looked up at the medics and found them both frowning," What? What can you see that we can't?"

"Something that Roxie or Simmons will explain in their own time." Ratchet's voice was grave, a clear indication that what was being said was definitely something that not even they could fully grasp.

What Jolt and Ratchet were reading was what Simmons knew he'd hear one day eventually. With every punch and swing Roxie aimed at him she yelled," It's your fault! It's your fault he's gone! He would still be alive if you didn't tell him about stupid Sector Seven! It's all your fault!" Simmons dodged one more swing and watched with sad eyes as she fell to her knees in tears.

When Roxie had cried in Sarah's arms it had been to release present withheld emotions. Crying in front of Simmons was to embrace that which had never fully sunk in. Her mother and father were dead, she had no grandparents, aunts or uncles, she had no family to care and support her through her life of hell.

Simmons went down to his own knees and embraced the girl thtat had wanted to tear him apart. Rocking her back and forth he whispered in comfort," I know my little Rock, I know. It's okay. Cry all you want. You can beat the crap out of me every day until you feel better."

"What the Pit is going on?" The humans jumped at the new voice. Looking behind and up they found Ironhide and Optimus standing next to Ratchet and Jolt.

"I think the best way to describe all that is a really bad reunion." Maggie provided the answer in a quiet voice, something in the air felt as if it had been charged with a lot of tense energy and Roxie's collapse had diminished it.

Just as she had when she was a little girl Roxie succumbed to emotional fatigue once she cried most of her pain out. Simmons scooped her up in his arms and walked towards the group, his face was almost void of emotions, it didn't even show that he was struggling to carry the teenager. Instead of stopping he kept walking right past them but called over his shoulder," Someone do me a favour and grab my things. I'm laying her down in the med bay Doc." Tools, like most people, wasn't best friends with the ex-agent but at that moment he had grown some respect for him. Simmons had deliberately taken a few hits and never once swung back at Roxie. Out of this new respect Tools grabbed his shirt, shoes and socks.

Everyone that had witnessed the 'reunion' followed the human and his unconscious assailant back into the main hangar.

They all waited outside as Roxie was put on a berth to be left alone. Going back out he took his stuff then, much to everyone's surprise, glared right at Optimus," What is Roxie doing here? I should have been told immediately when she was brought here."

"Roxanne was brought here for protection Agent Simmons. As for notification, if we had known you were connected to her we would have indeed informed you instantly." Optimus recognized a subtle undertone to Simmons' tone as paternal worry, something he had only heard from Will, Sarah, Judy and Ron in concerns to their children.

Running a hand through his hair Simmons sighed," Right, you didn't know because that information is also classified. But from now on I want to know EVERYTHING that has happened right up until this point, and anything that happens after today."

"What claim do you have to Roxanne to make these demands?" Ironhide asked with a clipped tone of his own. He didn't enjoy taking orders from anyone, especially not from a human acting like Roxie's care taker.

Meeting the mech's glare straight on with his own Simmons answered back," I am her godfather, giving me full rights to know what is going on with her."

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**J: Yup, I went there. If you go back to Roxie's memory of from 'Day At The Beach' you can probably guess who he was going to say. Let me know if I got the names of Mikela and Maggie right please! Or if I got anyone else wrong!**


	15. Tell and Show

**GG23: Looks like you got lucky my duckies, I managed to get in some free time to type up this next chapter. However this might be the only time I can get away with it, but we'll just have to wait and see :3**

**THANKS TO:**

**Ultimateanime12 - **Ahha, thanks for the correction.

**Jazzi Flynn - **It came to me when I asked myself, "How is Tools going to keep Leo from flirt attacking Roxie upon sight?" xD

**Silverfire's Shadow - **Lol, that was actually going to be my first idea, but then I decided to keep the blood clean xD

**Ironaft30 - **It might take a couple chapters but that should happen since she had a happy childhood with him :3

**Person - **I'm truly sorry for the offense, it really wasn't my intention :( I will keep your comment in mind whenever I speak of Maggie or other Australians from now on :)

**Frenzi99 - **Thanks for the correction, I wasn't entirely sure on the spelling and I didn't have the time to look it up ahha. Glad you're enjoying it!

**Standout4Christ - **Awesome, I'll look into the song sometime soon when I get the chance :3

**Dontgotaclue88 - **Lol, that's pretty much everyone else's thoughts as well xD

**Supergirlprime - **An interesting definition of Simmons that I may or may not steal for a future chapter xD

**Tailsdoll123 - **That is a common theme, and I don't like follow trends if I can avoid it. There will be a future chapter addressing that issue though, remember, there are other femmes on the base that would love to get their claws in the boy ;)

**Latina Shewolf - **Keep in mind that Roxie doesn't want to be involved in a relationship at the present time, if anything she's a bit curious to see what Mikeala is like that would make Tools smile like that. It is different from the goofy smiles he shows after all. And wait until you read the next chapter, it's going to confirm your approval thought xD

**Kezzie - **Actually his name is Reginald, but you were closer than I was xD And I gave Roxie a few of my traits and certain situations I ask myself what I would do, but I'm doing my best to make Roxie a girl all her own. :3

**DISCLAIMER: HASBRO OWNS TRANSFORMERS. IRONAFT30 OWNS TOOLS. ROXIE BELONGS TO ME!**

**WARNING: REALLY CRAPPY FIGHT IN THIS CHAPTER**

**APOLOGY: I'm sorry if this chapter will offend any femmes that are blonde and like Lululemon. I had a rough time with other femmes that were more or less like the character you'll read about and I took my frustrations out through here. Again. Sorry if it offends!  
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Chapter Fourteen – Tell and Show**

All bots present went straight to the internet to find the definition and meaning behind the new title, as they did Tools, Maggie and Glen blinked at the man in bewilderment. Everyone on base knew that Reginald Simmons still lived with his mother when on leave (he will always correct them that his mother lives with him.) The thought of the ex-agent being responsible for another person's child had never crossed their minds, and never would have if he didn't just announce it.

"According to the web a Godfather is the spiritual and physical guardian of a child, a person given the responsibilities of a parent in the event that the child's parents are no longer able to so. Roxanne made no mention of you being her replacement care taker in the history she provided us." Ratchet had read the definition he'd found out loud to get confirmation since it didn't add up to what they knew.

"Better question I want to know the answer to is how you even got the position of Godfather. Are you her uncle or something?" Glen didn't pose the question in disrespect so much as the need for clarification. He may need really thick glasses at time but even he could see that there were no physical resemblances between the two.

A forlorn look came upon Simmons features, "Richard was my best friend since childhood. We went through elementary, junior high, high school, and even college together. I was his protection in a fight and he was my personal tutor with any subject I was struggling with. I was his best man at his wedding and his support when his wife passed away from child birth. I've known Roxie since she was just a babe in diapers. I lost contact with them for a few years when I joined Sector Seven. Rick, the smart bastard, managed to find me again and asked for help one more time to keep his daughter safe. It was easy enough to get that big brain of his into Sector Seven's Research team, and even easier to get protection for little Roxie. No one that worked with me or Rick protested when she was brought into work those times he couldn't get a babysitter. Her favourite game was to hide from the higher ups whenever they came to do inspection. Little monkey actually hung from the back of N.B.E 1's leg for twenty minutes even in a protective suit...That day that Mission City happened was her 16th friggn birthday. I didn't know what happened to Rick until the next day, and by that time Roxie had run for it, probably out of fear because her protection was gone. I called her cellplayer so many times and she never picked up. I lost track of her entirely when she changed her last name. I only found her trail again earlier this year. I am so relieved she's here and alright." As Simmons had relayed all this information he had gone into his wallet and pulled out three pictures. The first showed Simmons and who could only be Roxie's father in high school, both boys covered in bruises and band-aids with an arm slung around each others shoulders. The second showed Simmons in his late twenties standing next to Richard Evans and the woman that shared a lot of Roxie's facial features. The last one showed Simmons and many other men and women standing front of Megatron's foot. Roxie, at a very young age sat on Simmon's shoulders grinning with one of her front teeth missing.

Maggie and Glen, hearing Roxie's complicated past for the first time were left with more questions that could be answered by Roxie alone, or possibly some of the Autobots. Tools and the bots were processing all this information in stride. It was clear that the man they thought had too much of an ego had been suffering over the years just as Roxie had. "Thank you for sharing this information with us Agent Simmons. I will have a report made of the current events that have lead Roxanne to be here made for you immediately." Optimus could see the pain in Simmons' eyes and felt letting the man know what had happened to his charge was something he could do to relieve some of his worry.

Ironhide had recorded all of Simmons' story to share with Will and Sarah once he got a moment to speak to them alone. Since Sarah and Will had taken Roxie into their care it only made sense to keep them updated on any developments that would effect their relationship with her. Will would undoubtedly go looking for Simmons to make sure it was real and Sarah would be relieved to know the girl wasn't entirely without some kind of family connection.

Ratchet made a note to get more information if possible from these classified files as well as from Simmons. The man would know of any surgeries or tests done to her that had not been put into her classified files.

Jolt had listened to the story with everything else he had learned about her in mind. His final conclusion of the femme was that she seemed to stay the same even after everything that had happened to her. A flash of Roxanne on the beach by herself humming that sorrowful song corrected his conclusion. In front of others she remained the same, on her own she would allow herself to reveal the person she truly was. Jolt, at that moment, allowed himself to feel the smallest spark of sympathy towards the human. It still did not change his views of humans as a whole though. They were still primitive and unworthy of his full attention, but he would warrant Roxanne Glitch the rare gift of his notice from then on, more for study than anything else.

"If you found her trail why didn't you go after her?" Tools' question sounded cold and unconcerned about the topic. Ironhide and Ratchet were startled by the tone of his voice more than the question. That tone didn't belong to Tools, he'd gotten it from Sunstreaker and Sideswipe. It was the tone they used when they wanted information before going berserk on a Decepticon. Hearing it from the young human field scout implied two thing. One: He had been spending far too much time around the front liner twins. Two: He was doing his best to keep his temper, the temper that had put more than one older and stronger soldier into the med bay for near death recovery.

His age showing through his eyes Simmons asked more as the man everyone knew," How would I do that, huh? My lead was from a contact I have in the F.B.I. His information was, 'Recently a 19 year old Caucasian woman by the name of Roxanne Glitch has been at the top of the Most Wanted list by request of Agent Stone and Agent Steep.' I couldn't just go over to Galloway and say, 'Hey I'm taking an early vacation to look for my goddaughter who is wanted by your best friends to be made into a human guinea pig!' And don't think for a second that I didn't want to just up and leave to go look for her you punk. She's my family, her father was my brother and her mother my sister. It tore me to shreds not knowing what she was doing or if she'd gotten caught by those scumbags in suits. As long as I'm alive that girl is my top priority in life. Remember that junior." Simmons literally got nose to nose with Tools, taking on the cold icicle daggers that came from his glare.

His tone slipping towards a growl Tools straightened his back to add physical imposition," Family wouldn't have let her go almost fraggin years on her own to suffer. You lost your Sector Seven assets, so what. You could have used that time to look for her instead of running back to your mommy. Let's face it, if Sam hadn't needed your help you would still be there and still not know where Roxie is. Nngh!"

Tools and Simmons had their focus set so intently on each other they didn't see Roxie step out of the med bay and walk over to them. The death spell broke when Roxie lashed forward and landed a solid upper cut to Tools' jaw, sending him staggering back with a hand to his bleeding mouth since he'd bitten into his lip from the impact.

"You have no right to try and defend me Gregory, you've known me for what, a couple of days? You know shit all about me so keep your moth shut. We'll talk properly later Uncle Simian, come on Maggie. I need a swim in the ocean and girl to talk to." Roxie struck, hissed and walked all in one fluid motion. Tools was left looking completely stunned along with Jolt, Ironhide and Ratchet. Maggie looked from the retreating Roxie up to Optimus, he only nodded that it would be better to accompany the angry Roxanne.

Glen went over to Tools to get a better look at the already darkening bruise and swelling lip. His voice a frightened whisper he told Tools," That's why I don't like red heads. They're the scariest."

A very angry sounding lone engine had Tools wishing he could hide under a rock and covered by a force field. "What did you do to piss off Roxie Tools?" Chromia transformed once she stopped in front of the cringing human. From the set of her facial plates it was clear she wasn't going to leave or let him leave until she got the answer," I...lost my temper with Simmons."

"How does that relate to anything?" Confusion mixed into the anger and only frustrated Chromia more.

"Long story." The response was said in unison from almost all bots present.

"Fine, I'll leave your punishment until after I hear this story. In the mean time I'll make sure Roxie doesn't drown herself. Apparently she's sitting in the water up to her neck and letting the waves crash into her. And she's still in her clothes." Chromia let her guns power on and off while saying all this and heading off to the beach where her sisters already were.

Simmons was still simmering from what Tools had said but even he felt bad for the kid. "You're lucky she went easy on you kid. Had she gone full out you'd be missing teeth."

"That punch looked really familiar. Do you know where she learned to fight Simmons?" Glen's comment and question had all the bots curious. They hadn't seen anything unique about Roxie's movements. It didn't seem to belong to any style, just straight out brawling.

"You must have seen those youtube videos at one point then. I taught her the basics, but that upper cut is a family attack. Rick must have taught her." Simmons smiled at the memory of Richard Evans bringing down more than one man with that upper cut.

"What videos are you talking about Simmons?" Ironhide looked confused. If there were videos of Roxie on the internet he surely would have come across them when he did a background check his first day of knowing about her.

Glen's face lit up in realization," No way! The Rockette videos? That was her?"

"Mind sharing what you know?" Jolt was starting to get annoyed that the two humans were talking as if the bots, and even Tools, weren't even there.

"No man, the Rockette videos need to be shown. Can on of you go onto youtube and search The Rockette vs The Stagbeetle. It would be awesome if you could project it too."

Ironhide took the task upon himself to find and project the video. In front of the three men and four mechs came to life two females. One of them had long platinum blonde hair pulled up into a pony tail, her skin was flawless and she had bright white teeth. Her clothes were Lululemon and her posture spoke of a superiority complex. Across from her was without a doubt the girl that had attacked Tools. Her hair was red but hung down to the middle of her back, her skin was a tad more tan and she stood an inch and a half shorter. She wore baggy cut off jean shorts, a bright blue muscle shirt and a black hoodie tied around her waist.

Younger Roxie raised a fist to yell," What the hell gives you the right to talk about my friend that way? Your nose job or your implanted boobs?"

"Stuff it Midget, all I did was tell her the truth. She is fugly, she'll never get a boyfriend and she should stay out of my sight." The other girl that must be Stagbeetle had said this all calmly while looking at perfectly manicured nails.

"And you're any better to look at? I see you and your mindless zombie clones and I feel like I'm surrounded by mutant Barbie dolls come to life. Not to mention you go through guys like Kleenex." The person holding the camera began to snicker, the girls' insults were somehow amusing to him.

"At least I stick with one gender, everyone knows you're bi. How many STDs are you carrying from all those threesomes you must be having?" Stagbeetle smirked at the intensified glare and lack of denial coming from Roxie. (Tools was currently letting his jaw hang open.)

"Okay yes, fine, I'm bi-sexual. Big friggin deal. But at least I don't pay my boyfriend to be with me. And you know what, you're clearly not worth anymore of my time. Because it' obvious your brain comes from your boobs that could probably stop a bullet. C'mon Joey, we're going." Roxie then stuck to her words and turned around to leave. The camera, who they now knew was being held by Joey (making Tools close his mouth and clench his fists) stayed in place focused on the girl Roxie had just insulted by walking away from.

"Guess you don't want your crappy piece of metal back. What did you call it? A cellplayer?" The camera zoomed in on the girl's hand were she now held Roxie's cellplayer.

"You're the one that broke into my locker? You bitch, give it back right now!" Roxie came back into the shot looking scarier than she had when she'd gone after Simmons and scarier than when she told Tools off. Chills went down Glen, Simmons and Tools' spine. The mechs watching made notes of all the behaviours and responses of the femmes. They were beginning to see that Will and Epps had just reasons for doing whatever they could to keep their wives happy.

"Awww, does little freak want to listen to hear her mommy's voice and the stupid little tune with no words." The girl's words had Jolt's further attention. Ratchet in turn focused more on Jolt since Jolt ha spoken to him the night before.

"Give. It. Back." Roxie was slowly approaching the blonde haired girl now and it seemed very possible that she would strangle the girl if given the opportunity.

"Make me freak." With those words all hell broke loose with added computer effects. The song 'Breaking the Habit' by Linkin Park kicked in just as Roxie charged the blonde with a head butt in the stomach. The force brought them to the ground with Roxie on top, allowing her full access to the girl's face with her fists. She got in three good punches before the blonde got a blow on the side of Roxie's temple, effectively getting Roxie off her person.

Dazed but still on her feet Roxie did her best to dodge and block the round house kicks the blonde flawlessly executed one after another. She got her head straight just before the fifth kick, Roxie dodged around and got on her special upper cut into the blonde's midsection. The shot zoomed in on the contact point, a deep voice overlapped all other noises announcing, "THE ROCKETTE ROCKET PUNCH!" Simmons rolled his eyes at this.

The blonde staggered back wheezing, Roxie had lost most of her rage and had regained some logic," Just give me my cellplayer back and I'll leave, and tell everyone you beat the crap out of me."

"You're talking like you're going to win." The blonde had recovered and was beginning to circle Roxie. From what the bots could tell the blonde wanted to keep fighting for a reason they didn't understand, they also could tell that the blonde was better trained for fighting. The blonde knew this as well. Ironhide recalled the explanation Roxie had given about her scar and realized how this would end.

The music had dimmed down when Roxie had given the blonde the option to leave the fight. The song changed and the volume increased, the song that started made Tools raise an eyebrow at Glen. 'Mortal Kombat ' didn't seem to fit the situation. Glen help up a finger to tell Tools to just wait.

The cellplayer had been put into the blonde's pocket before the fight. Now she took it out and put it down her shirt in her bra. "You want your toy back, come and get it bitch."

No one knew what the blonde had expected Roxie to do but she she had not expected her to go into her pocket and throw something. The blonde had ducked and gave Roxie a 'WTF' look right before Roxie slugged her right on the nose. The blonde stepped back and her foot crunched down on the item that Roxie had thrown, a fire cracker. It went off with a loud 'SNAP!' With a yelp the blonde left herself open for Roxie's kick to her legs, making her fall to the ground. Acting quick Roxie put her foot on the blonde's neck and crouched down to reclaim her cellplayer. The blonde lashed out with her nails and slashed the area above her right eye. "AGH!"

Roxie backed away covering the gushing wound, the camera was put down on an elevated surface. Tools and the mechs got their first look at Joey as he rushed over to Roxie. The blonde got up, put the cellplayer on the ground and growled," You made me break a nail Freak. I hope that teaches you a lesson. Go against me again and I'll do more than that." The video then went black and red letters dissolved onto the screen 'Rockette: 0 Stagbeetle: 1'

"I never did like that little snob. Victoria Stag was her name. I hope she ended up on the streets." Simmons shook his head once Ironhide had changed his optics back to normal.

"It was like watching Megatron putting Starscream or any other insubordinate back in their place. They were quite young, but the negativity was astounding." Ratchet said this with a sigh, it was hard to understand the humans sometimes.

"That's how it usually ends up being in high school depending on what friends you make." Tools and Glen spun around to find Will and Epps behind them, Will looked anything but impressed, he'd walked over to see what they were watching and had watched a younger Roxie take a beating.

"Glen, you said this was a series of videos. How many more are there?" Optimus wasn't interested in the violent entertainment, he was curious and worried about the young girl Roxanne having gone through similar treatment more than once.

"There are three more. But they all should have been deleted last year. What is with today? It seems like I can't do anything without learning of something more to piss me off." Roxie had answered the question from behind Ratchet. Maggie and the triplets stood next to her looking confused.

"I apologize for upsetting you Roxanne, we were not aware of your disapproval of them." Optimus took notice that Roxie was dripping wet in all her clothes. She clearly had let the ocean wash over her multiple times.

Roxie waved a tired hand at the large mech," It's okay Optimus, you didn't know. And it's really just the first one that bothers me. No one likes watching their failure. I'm going to get changed and sulk for the next two hours. Please don't tell them any baby stories Uncle Simian. That's all I ask." She'd walked and talked at the same time. When she got around to the men she stopped and gently took hold of Tools' face.

Tools' breathe froze in his lungs at her touch, she turned his head a little to the left and right to evaluate the damage she'd done. She didn't say anything out loud but the look in her eyes and slight frown on her mouth spoke volumes of her guilt and apology. Roxie let go and continued walking. Tools' put a hand to where he cold hands had touched his face and let out a small sigh. "She won't ever say it, but she's sorry. She inherited a lot of looks and stuff from her dad, but she inherited her mother's temper. She'll do something in a fit of rage one minute, cool down the next, and worry over what she did for the next ten minutes...Can I get that report now?" Simmons had seen Roxie do that before and explained it to all the other observers.

"Of course, come with me please." Optimus lowered his hand to let Simmons walk onto his palm. This would allow them to reach his office quicker and to exchange information that could help them uncloud Megatron's intentions.

Will looked around the collected group until he set his sights on Tools with his swollen lip and bruised chin. "It seems I've missed a lot since I left you three to get acquainted. You can fill me in while we get ice for your face Tools. Maggie, Glen would you mind joining Epps on look out for Bumblebee?" Will knew better than to order around the Autobots without Optimus present so he stuck with asking what humans were present. Maggie and Glen reluctantly obliged and went with Epps to one of the watch towers to keep look out for the air carrier or boat that would be bringing over more of their friends.

The remaining Autobots opened a comm link to talk. _**'Would one of you three PLEASE tell us what we just missed? I don't mean the whole story, you can give us a report on that later. I mean just now concerning videos.' **_Chromia.

_**'On the internet there are a collection of videos the human designated Joey recorded of Roxanne in combat.' **_Ratchet replied and sent along the video link they had just watched.

_**'You won't like the blonde human, I suggest waiting until you're on the shooting range before watching.' **_Ironhide sent this quickly to prevent the triplets from putting holes in the floor and walls.

_**'Very well. We will wait.' **_Arcee, the oldest of the triplets, made sure to give the eager Chromia a stern vibe through their bond to make sure she did as told. Chromia's curiosity bothered her too much, sending her off to the shooting range while watching the video at the same time. Ironhide had a half hour before his training session with the younger twins. (Which usually took ten minutes longer than need be since Ironhide had to find and drag them out of hiding first.)

_**'I hope Roxie doesn't actually intend to be depressed as she said she would. She's more fun when she's happy.' **_Flareup looked in the direction of the room they shared with their human friend.

_**'She won't. Go tell her to put on the clothing meant for getting wet then bring her to the wash pit.' **_Jolt said his thoughts as they came to him. He ignored the surprised looks of his comrades and rolled off to the wash pit to make sure all the necessary items were there for human use.

_**'Did Jolt, the second most anti-human bot on base, seriously just tell us he's going to make Roxie give his alt mode a wash?' **_Arcee's question matched the size of her optics that followed the blue mech outside.

_**'More or less yes he did. I believe he intends to ask her some questions while she does. I would do as he says, I doubt anymore harm will come out it.' **_Ratchet put some ideas together to explain his apprentice's odd behaviour. The end result didn't sound like it would be harmful, it might just benefit both human and mech.

Arcee and Flareup shrugged at each other and rolled off to follow instructions. It helped that they were curious to see what Tools would do when he saw her in a bathing suit.


	16. They Found Him

**GG23: Man am I ever tired right now "yawwwwn."Since I did some recalculations and shuffling I was able to make today a free day. I thought I should give my Decepticon lovers and Joey haters a chance to enjoy a chapter :3 Sorry that's it so short but it made more sense to do it this way. This chapter takes place during the same day that the bots and Tools learn about Simmons being Roxie's godfather.**

**THANKS TO:**

**Thatgirlbehindyou: **Didn't expect Jolt to get some affection xD And hey, they're femmes that have been denied some girl fun for a LONG time, they're going to let loose if they have to do some damage in the process lol.

**Silverfire's Shadow: **Yup, if you recall from the chapter 'Day At The Beach' Roxie says she loses her first fight then triumphs in the ones that followed. Lol, you'll get use to it the more you review :3 I believe it's totally possible to do damage with the proper strength and length of nails.

**Tailsdoll123: **I can't be your favorite, there are two other fanfic writers that are much better than me! But I'm still flattered :3

**XxBlackEaglexX: **"Nods" Yup, they deserve some physical punishment every now and then for their horrible treatment of others.

**Ultimateanime12: **Yup, the last guy you would suspect of being connected to her in some way right? To be honest I'm just making everything up as I go, and Ironaft30 helps me come up with things too. Simmons was all my idea though xD

**Ironhide and Lennox: **You know I never thought much about the Stagbeetle outside of that chapter, I might consider this for a future one shot idea or something. Glad you're enjoying it! Spread the love to your other fanfic reading friends! :D

**Standout4Christ: **Roxie actually doesn't hold too much ill will towards him now that she's socked him in the face, if you recall she was being all gentle and nice while examining the damage she did. But yes, Tools is still in a world of trouble from Chromia concerning Roxie's anger.

**Ironaft30: **Lol, no, it was a group of femmes actually, then it changed to two in high school. So many times I wished I could have done what Roxie did, but my courage wasn't that awesome :(

**Supergirlprime: **Wow...thanks for that new curse, definitely using it in my fanfic somehow. And I didn't think about the ocean representing tranquility lol, I just thought it would be an amusing thing for Roxie to sulk by letting herself get half drowned while wearing her clothes xD

**Latina Shewolf: **Teehee, gonna have to wait for the next chapter for the Tools teasing xD I have it all worked out in my mind and it is hilarious to the point where I start smiling like an idiot just thinking about it XD I always thought Simmons could be an awesome uncle figure for some reason, as for Jolt, well I'll be letting you all in on his personality change in the not so distant future.

**DISCLAIMER: HASBRO OWNS TRANSFORMERS. IRONAFT30 OWNS TOOLS. I OWN ROXANNE!**

**NEWSFLASH: In the next week or so I will be publishing a fun little project that Ironaft30 and myself will be writing together, as well as starring in. Yes its a self insertion fanfic, but we're bored and it's nice to work on something else from this ever growing master piece xD  
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Chapter Fifteen – They Found Him**

Joey Haverman stepped out of his apartment building and frowned up at the sky. It had been bright and sunny throughout the morning while he had been sleeping off his hangover. He had been turned down for two more jobs and had gone to a club to drink some of his stress off. He was only leaving his pitiful excuse of a shelter to go to a job interview he'd been offered an hour ago.

The man that had called to offer the job had sounded a little off the sane scale, and he would often laugh at a joke he wouldn't share. The man had said his name was Cid Clone, and the job was to do data entry for some new up and coming company he couldn't remember the name of. The job sounded crappy and the payment being offered wasn't any better, but it was still a chance to get his life back in order since he'd split up with Roxanne Glitch.

He still remembered that day he'd broken up with her as well as giving her up to the authorities. To him the exchange had seemed fair. He had lost his job and means of supporting himself. So he had taken away her shelter and her boyfriend. He betrayed expression and yells of ill wishes he'd brushed off at the time, the past few nights he'd been dreaming of her. She would be draped over a slab of rock, tears and blood streaking down his face. Her eyes were closed at first but they opened in a second, revealing them to be completely red. Her voice a quiet whisper she moaned," This is your fault. Why did you tell them Joey? Why?"

The dream always got him to wake up at a ridiculous time soaked in sweat and out of breathe. That lead to even more drinking and more hangovers. That night he had been left to sleep in peace which he relished in. A good night's sleep let Joey refresh his mind and body of the alcohol he'd been consuming.

Shaking the dream from his mind Joey pulled out the paper he'd written the address on. The interview location was only another part of the oddity of the job offer. According to the address and google maps he was having his interview in an abandoned office building that had been for sale for the past twelve years. _'Maybe that's where they're going to start their branch. Better not be a disgusting dump or I'll leave before I even speak to this Cid character.' _Joey knew from Roxanne's past years of complaints that he was far too picky about certain things, jobs were part of that picky area. Joey would never work for fast food, gas stations or restaurants to be a dishwasher. He found all those jobs far too degrading for his character.

A bus ride and a fifteen minute walk put Joey well on the outskirts of town in front of a building that looked ready to be demolished before it crumpled by itself. His gaze travelled up the four story building, there were several broken windows and the bricks it was made of had ivy slowly pulled away at the plaster holding them together. His gaze went all the way to the top where he caught sight of something strange. Checking to make sure no cars were coming Joey backed up into the street to get a better look at the roof. Parked on the roof of the building was a sleek black news helicopter. "What kind of guy drives a news helicopter to do an interview in a dump like this?" Joey had asked the question out loud without thinking, it was a habit he'd picked up from his many years spent with Roxanne. When something odd happened one of them would ask a question that the other person could answer in a comical way.

Straightening his suit jacket and adjusting the pony tail he'd pulled his hair back into Joey proceeded forward.

Stepping into the building Joey immediately felt like he was being made fun of. The inside of the building was a complete and total disaster. There was no lighting except for that which crept in through the windows. There were no other people, an overturned desk in the far corner, water dripping from the ceiling and a vending machine stood against the left wall with no power or snacks. Joey wanted to turn around and leave, the building was clearly a place meant to have gang wars and drug deals, not a location for interviews. He walked further in instead, the thought of the helicopter and his need for money made him grind his teeth. The first thing he was going to ask was to move the interview to the guy's helicopter, he'd be a much better person to talk there. (And he was feeling like a little boy just itching to go for a ride.)

To let more light in Joey had used a rock to prop the door open, it also let a breeze in to cleanse the air of a horrible stench that hit his nose the further he went in. The door abruptly closed when he'd turned his back to it. Spinning around he tentatively asked," Mr. Clone? Is that you?" Another thing that Joey had picked up from Roxanne was a touch of paranoia in enclosed spaces.

A burst of insane laughter came from behind him, all the hairs on his arms and his neck stood on end. Slowly turning Joey put agitation to his voice," Mr. Clone, if that's you I have to warn you that I don't handle practical jokes well."

"The only joke here is you Squishy." Again the source came from behind him. Fed up with this game Joey loosened his neck tie and got into a defensive stance. Jobless or not Joey refused to let his physique go, it was the only form of defence he had. "You'll be sorry if this was all a set up to scam me or something."

"Hahaha! The only one I'll ever apologize to is Lord Megatron Squishy. I'm in a good mood, which means I won't hurt you if you tell me what I want to know." The voice hadn't come from a single place, it sounded as if he was surrounded.

_'Megatron? Why does that name sound familiar?' _"So this is an interrogation? Let me guess, you want to know where to find Roxanne? Well sorry to ruin your day but as of two weeks ago I'm no longer associated with her. I'll be on my way then." Joe grit his teeth, it seemed that he could never get away from the mess Roxanne lived in. Since day one of being her boyfriend he'd been dragged through problem after problem because she was genetically different.

A man with black dread locks tied off in three different places on his head with yellowish skin, a classic black work suit with a gaudy orange undershirt and red tinted brown eyes ha appeared out of nowhere with a large disturbing grin. "Too bad Squishy, I have other questions to ask you." Lightning quick Cid Clone's hand flicked out to grab hold of Joey's neck. With abnormal strength he was lifted off the ground and swung around to be slammed against the wall.

Cyclonus had opposed to getting holographic programming installed in his systems, but finally using them was like playing with a new toy. Being able to throw around and mess with a squishy on their own level was exhilarating, especially since there was no risk of getting the human's squishy stuff all over his armour.

Joey was getting just enough air into his lungs to stay conscious and struggle against the man he was beginning to think wasn't entirely human. Cid Clone flexed his fingers around Joey's neck in a silent warning that he would cut off his oxygen entirely if he continued to struggle," Now be a good Squishy and tell me anything you can about the femme designated Roxanne Rose Evans. Also known as Roxanne Glitch. Tell me some useful information and I'll let you live." To make his threat true Cid used his free hand to grab Joey's middle and index finger and break them in a swift yank backwards. When Joey screamed in agony Cid cackled in delight, the snapping noise had been very pleasant.

Panting hard from the pain Joey gasped," What-what kind of things do you want to know? Rrrgh, be more specific." He was back where he had been two weeks ago with Agent Stone and Agent Steep, only instead of breaking fingers and strangling him they had made a phone call and got him fired. But it was still the same. They wanted information, any kind of key to get their hands on the ever elusive Roxanne.

"Hmmm. Let's see...She's not anywhere we know of but humans are stupid and return to their personal dwelling at some point. When will she return to her pathetic shelter?" Since his last encounter with Ironhide and his target they had kept surveillance on her dwelling to see if she would return. Only the human authorities entered the place and searched for things to take that might give them clues to her whereabouts.

Thinking the best he could through the haze of pain and lack of oxygen Joey managed to come to one thought," Sh-she wears these things on her ears that look like headphones. Th-they run on batteries that need to be recharged. Sh-she only has tw-two that last for two months. Sh-she'll need to get her extra set while the other recharges. R-Roxanne has a bad memory for small details like th-that. Th-the other batteries are probably still in her house. She'll need to get them any day now."

Cid Clone's demented grin spread larger across his face with this information. "You were a very good lead of information Squishy. I'll let you live today. Here's a present of my appreciation." His fist flew forward and got Joey on the right eye, his head went back to hit the wall knocking him out cold. Cyclonus let the body fall to the floor and disengaged his holoform cackling the whole time.

Rising up into the air Cyclonus got in touch with Starscream, _**' That squishy gave me some good information. He said the target should be returning to her shelter any day. What do you want me to do now?'**_

_** 'Very good Cyclonus. Meet me and Demolisher at the coordinates I'm sending you. We will set up a plan.' **_Starscream's voice was calm but Cyclonus knew that he was already putting together a trap that would ensure the capture of their target. With Megatron arriving in two Earth days failure in doing so was becoming a threat to their sparks.


	17. Calm Down and Wash Up

**GG23: I have to say, the hatred towards Joey was quite astounding, I didn't think I made him that much of a dislikeable character, and what's really funny about it is that I took the name from one of my friends who everybody really likes xD I thought the past few chapters have been too serious and not enough fun, so I had oodles of laughs writing this chapter! Hope you enjoy as well!**

**THANKS TO:**

**Standout4Christ: **Well, when you're desperate for work you often overlook the small details such as a real name xD

**Ultimateanime12:** Yup, that bastard that got some of his just rewards. Your review made me laugh :3

**Jazzi Flynn: **I'm doing the best I can to make Cyclonus as he is featured in 'Transformers Armada' so yes, he needs to be a bit on the psychotic side.

**LynxbyLynx: **I more or less made this chapter for you since I know you crave Decepticon action so much lol!

**Ironhide and Lennox: **Oh don't worry, if you look over the other reviews you'll see everyone else shares the same thought lol. To be honest I wasn't even aware I was switching between the POVs until you brought it to my attention ahha.

**XxBlackEaglexX: **At this point I'd be completely shocked if there was someone that actually liked Joey.

**Supergirlprime: **I think you're one of the more vicious Joey haters out of my whole regular reviewer club xD

**Latina Shewolf: **Glad to know violence made your day brighter lol. And yea, I deliberately made it that obvious so you readers could read it and think "Really? He is REALLY going to go in there?" LOL

**Tailsdoll123: **Like I told Ironhide and Lennox, don't worry about sounding mean or anything. Joey was made just to be hateful towards really xD It would be awesome if girls started calling horrible ex-boyfriends Joey LOL. Thanks for the luck!

**Tatyana Witwicky: **I always feel out of place when I get reviews for older chapters, but thank you for the love and approval all the same xD

**Dontgotaclue88: **Gonna have to wait another chapter or two, sorry :3

**DISCLAIMER: TRANSFORMERS IS OWNED BY HASBRO. TOOLS IS OWNED BY IRONAFT30. ROXANNE IS OWNED BY ME.**

**NEWSFLASH: So the mentioned joint project between me and Ironaft30 is up and running, it is under my profile called 'Bridge to Nowhere.' Would love it if you guys could give it a glance and throw us some ideas on what we could do with it since we have very little plot for it so far ahha.**

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Chapter Sixteen – Calm Down and Wash Up**

"You know I have two perfectly functioning legs right?" Roxie had to ask this of Flareup who was carrying her under her arm over to the wash pit. Her and Arcee were instructed to inform Roxie that she must change into her bathing suit (she only put on her bikini top and cut off kinda short shorts) and go give Jolt the wash she'd promised him.

Giggling the blue femme told her," I know, but I decided to take Jolt's instructions literally. Plus we're keeping you hidden." That just made Roxie raise an eyebrow, sometimes her female Autobots friends were quite strange. She wasn't really complaining though, where she was being held was very close to Flareup's spark, letting Roxie indirectly learn more about the bubbly sister of the triplets. One of the things she heard put a sneaky little smile on her face, _'HA! I knew it! Definitely teasing her about it tonight.'_

"What took you so long femme?" Jolt's snappy voice took away her smile in order for her to scowl at him in his alt mode. On the ground next to him was a bucket, soap, a really long hose and a couple of sponges.

Flareup put her down, gave Jolt a shy glance then rolled off to join Arcee in her hunt for Tools. From what she could see on the other mens faces they were not going to be disappointed in their little bit of revenge on the human.

Her arms crossed while she approached the mech she asked," I don't mind giving you a wash, but would it kill you to use my name. It's Roxanne, Roxie, Rock, Rebel or Glitch! Anyone of those will be much more welcome than femme." As she listed off all the names she got to work by starting the hose.

"Rock? Who calls you a compressed lump of minerals and dirt? I will continue to call you femme until I see fit to call you something else. Gah! That's cold!" Jolt's tone had sounded too snobby for Roxie's liking, she let him know by spraying his hood full blast with the frigid water. Jolt had reversed quickly out of the water, only making Roxie smile.

Turning the nozzle away from the now grumpy bot Roxie kept her hand in the water to tell when it warmed up. "Uncle Simian calls me Rock, or Little Rock, so in return I call him Uncle Simian. The water is warmer now, I swear." To prove it Roxie pointed the stream of water at herself, but only on her legs. She wasn't oblivious to her male audience that tried to watch her and do their jobs at the same time.

Jolt cautiously rolled forward back into range of the water. To be a little nicer Roxie aimed for his tires first, he didn't complain so she washed over the rest of his form. That done she filled the bucket with soap and water then turned off the hose, the last thing she needed was a surprise revenge soaking. Sudsy sponge in hand she asked," Where do you want me to start and where am I not allowed to wash?" This wash was meant to be her way of repaying Jolt for helping her to hide from Galloway, she didn't want to ruin it by doing something she shouldn't.

"You can start in the front to get rid of all the bugs. Just don't go under the bottom edge of my sides." Jolt was one of the few remaining Autobots that hadn't been washed by a human. Ironhide, Ratchet, Optimus and Bumblebee all claimed it to be a much better experience than going through the car wash or spraying themselves down to get rid of most of the dirt.

When the warm sponge hit his bonnet he found they hadn't been lying. The more Roxie wiped and scrubbed the better and more relaxed he felt. "Just so you know, this is really, really gross. Probably feels even nastier though."

"You have no idea femme. It's especially disgusting when they hit the windshield. Urrggh." Jolt's whole body literally shuddered at all the times big nasty bugs went splat against the glass and he couldn't do anything to get the remains off. Roxie smiled at the rather humanish reaction and continued in her task to remove all the bugs and their guts.

The bug removal took close to five minutes to finish. Standing up Roxie regarded the sponge with a grimace," I don't think this sponge should ever be used again. Now onto your hood and windshield. Did I ever mention I like your choice of alt mode?"

"No, and it's about time someone did. Any of the humans I've interacted with have asked why I didn't choose a more hardy alt mode like Ironhide. They only think about appearances, this style of vehicle was designed to be better for the environment. Which is why I chose it. You humans are doing a fine job of destroying your planet every year with the amount of natural resources your using and not replacing." With the amount of passion Jolt ranted about the topic Roxie could tell this was something that had been bothering him from the get-go.

A new sponge in hand she got to work on his hood. "They're muscle headed men that don't usually think about all the crap their cool vehicles put into the air. I've never liked big cars, it's one of the reasons why I only have my motorcycle license...Jolt, are you cooing?" In the midst of her talk and washing Jolt had started to emit a sound that reminded her of a purr but was made of multiple whirling noises. Bringing it to attention caused him to stop and silently curse. Roxie's voice and the soothing motion of the sponge had caused Jolt to relax to the point of near bliss, in that state it was natural for Cybertronians to outwardly express it.

"Just keep washing and ignore anything you hear." Jolt's voice didn't have nearly as much snip to it as he'd like, but he was so immersed in relaxation it was hard to sound serious.

Smirking Roxie continued cleaning," I'll try, but with the batteries in my hearing mufflers low it's kind of hard not to pay attention to things I hear. Do you think I'd be able to go back to my house tomorrow if I asked Will or Optimus?" As the batteries ran down in her hearing mufflers the effect of the mufflers runs down as well. The Autobots were the main source of noise she picked up, but whenever a soldier with any tech came close to her she would hear the high pitched whine that she despised. Without her hearing mufflers she'd hear any Autobots or any technology within a 10 meter radius.

"Considering your circumstances you won't be able to go anywhere without a guardian and possibly one or two soldiers." Over the years the Autobots had thought over all possible scenarios involving their human allies. Depending on the human's situation and abilities they would do what they could to allow the humans to continue their lives before the incident in Mission City and Egypt.

"That's fine with me, I just need to grab a couple of things and I'll be set to stay here until Megatron dies or hopefully just forgets about me." Roxie spoke quietly so she could listen to the strange coo-purr that Jolt was making again as she worked from the windshield up to the roof.

Over by the main hangar Tools was walking along with two young men and a woman, as well as Simmons and Will in a deep conversation. Exiting the hangar Tools eyes somehow knew exactly where to look. He stopped walking, his jaw dropped and a deep blush crossed his cheeks. Samuel Witwicky, Leo Spitz and Mikeala Banes looked at their friend with worry. Simmons and Will saw what had frozen the younger soldier and reacted. Both men slapped a hand over Tools' eyes. There came two more slaps from Mikeala slapping one hand over Sam's eyes and one hand over Leo's eyes.

_'The triplets set me up! Roxie wanted to talk to me my aft!' _"Come on! I'm an adult!" Tools reached up to try and pry the hands off his face.

"Yea, and that's why this show is over for you. You're going to turn around and go back inside." Simmons took off his hand, spun Tools around and shoved him inside. Tools complied but not without grumbling about revenge plans on the triplets. Will went out to snap all his men back to attention and Simmons went to go talk to his goddaughter.

"Mikeala! Ow! Hey! I'm single, I'm single! This isn't fair!" Leo whined like a baby as Mikeala grabbed him by the ear and Sam by the back of his shirt.

"Young lady! What do you think you're doing?" Roxie and Jolt let out a small grumble at the interrupted of their peace.

Straightening up Roxie replied in a very chipper voice," Washing Jolt with orange juice and baby tears, what else would I be doing Uncle Simian?"

"Very funny Little Rock. What I meant is what are you doing wearing THAT? What's wrong with a black t-shirt and pants?" Simmons gestured to Roxie's bikini top and kinda short shorts.

Frowning deeply Roxie asked back," Do you know what the temperature is? Do you know how easy it would be for me to have a heat stroke in a black shirt and pants? I'm 19, a legal adult, that means I can wear these if I want."

_'Great, she's still got some of her rebellion phase in her.' _Pinching the bridge of his nose with this thought Simmons decided to back off," Fine, you're a big girl. You can do whatever you want. But if you're going to wear those you might as well wash all the jeeps on base after you're finished with him. Big girl's get to work after all."

Roxie gaped at her adopted uncle, _'He just used the responsibility card! I hate the responsibility card!' _"Damn, fine. But I get an hour break first to eat and reapply sunscreen before I do the jeeps." Simmons gave Roxie a pat on the shoulder in agreement and walked away whistling in victory.

A noise that sounded a little like choking made Roxie spin around to glare at Jolt," Are you laughing at me?"

"Heh...No, there was absolutely nothing amusing about you getting put in your place...Hehehe." Jolt lost it and burst outright into laughter, Roxie's face going a little red in embarrassment made him laugh harder.

"That's it." Roxie ran over to the hose, flipped it on and sprayed Jolt right on the hood she'd just lathered with suds. With a yelp Jolt reversed and transformed into his bi-pedal mode. This only made Roxie angrier since she could see a smirk in his optics that was covered by his battle mask. "Making yourself taller doesn't help you." She directed the spray to Jolt's chest making the Autobot grumble and retreat further.

_'Frag I'm losing! Need a weapon.' _Scanning the area his sights fell on the perfect ammunition. Taking a step to the left he scooped up the bug covered sponge and threw it at Roxie. It hit her straight on the chest, "EW! EW! EEEEWWWW!" Shrieking and jumping from foot to foot Roxie swatted the sponge off and used the hose to wash off all the dead bug bodies that had stuck to her. The strange dance and shrieking amused Jolt enough to make him laugh more.

The bugs gone Roxie redirected the nozzle at Jolt's face, some of it must have gotten under his face mask since he started to spit and splutter. "HA!...Uh oh...Jolt...NO!" Jolt had not appreciated the face wash. He'd gone back to his alt mode and revved his engine threateningly. Roxie froze, dropped the hose and ran for all she was worth. Jolt followed behind at a speed that kept him right on her heels.

In the main hangar any soldiers in the way dodged to the side, watched and began laughing.

Tools, Mikeala, Sam and Leo sat on the communications platform catching up and learning about the girl that they now knew Tools had the major hots for."She's pretty cool, she has really sensitive hearing that can pick up this weird whining noise from electronics. She says she can hear...Uuuh..." Tools had trailed off mid sentence at the sound of someone running a car following. Leaning over the railing he saw Roxie running away from Jolt.

"Wow, it's like watching you run away from Ironhide after the twins abandoned you." Mikeala, Sam and Leo had all thought the same thing and the two boys nodded in agreement. Tools gave them a small scowl and took off down the stairs. Whatever was going on between Jolt and Roxie he didn't want to miss.

Ratchet, Ironhide, Sunstreaker, Sideswipe and Optimus were discussing battle plans when they heard," A little help please?" Looking down the main floor they saw Roxanne running straight for them away from Jolt.

Five optic ridges raised as the girl ran around and hid behind Ironhide's foot. Jolt switched to bi-pedal and asked rather casually," Would you please hand me the human femme, we were in the middle of something."

Amusement was clear in the apprentice medic's optics, something they had not seen from him since the incident back on Cybertron. The twins smiled at each other then at Ironhide," Do it! He won't hurt her, right Jolt?"

"Of course not, I would never defy orders." His voice betrayed a slight tone of restrained evil, another sign of the Jolt they'd once known.

"Don't even think of handing me over to that crazy robot! He's going to do SOMETHING! And it's going to involve water! I know it!" Roxie wasn't entirely sure, but she could swear all of them were trying not to smile, even Optimus!

"Well he did ask nicely, and if it's true that it involves water then you're already prepared for it. What do you think Optimus?" Ratchet's words caused Roxie to pale and cling tighter to some of Ironhide's foot plating.

Optimus looked to be thinking about it, key word was looked," This is not a decision for me to make. The call is yours Ironhide." He passed along the decision to Ironhide truthfully for fear of earning the young woman's scorn. Multiple encounters with angry femmes, human and Cybertronian alike, had taught Optimus to be cautious.

"SCREW THIS! THANKS FOR NOTHING YOU MEANIES!" In complete panic mode Roxie made a run for it to the human hallway. Jolt took chase with a big smile, he didn't know why, but he was truly enjoying himself. Bumblebee stood very close to the human hallway along with Skids and Mudflap. Jolt had been told about the insult the twins had been dealt and put it into effect, _**'Skids, Mudflap. Don't let her get away!' **_

The twins didn't need to be told twice and ran around Bumblebee to block the hallway," Of you ain't goin' that way girl."

"Run, run, run as fast as you can!" Skids and Mudflap high fived each other when Roxie quickly changed her course, swore at the twins and made for the second level to duck in cover in her room.

She just about reached the first step when she was lifted off the ground without warning. "Nice try femme, but I'm not done with you."

"Argh! You suck Jolt, put me down!" Roxie beat down with her fists on the hand that had firm hold of her. Much to her horror Jolt only laughed.

Tools and the others had just reached the group of mechs that had done nothing to help Roxie when Jolt came by with Roxie in his hand. Seeing him Roxie desperately called out," TOOLS! DO SOMETHING! PLEASE!" Tools knew she wasn't in any real danger but her plea for help still got to him.

He moved to follow but was stopped by Sideswipe picking him up," Uh uh, you're doing nothing Tools."

"But- "

"Calm down, he won't hurt her." Sunstreaker said this from the three steps back he'd taken away from the gathered humans.

"Don't interfere Tools. For the first time in a long time Jolt is having fun. He needs it, and like Sunstreaker said, he won't hurt her. Just mess with her probably." Ratchet explained the situation so Tools could understand where they were coming from by letting Jolt get away with his antics.

"Jolt? Fun? Those words don't sound like they go together." Sam spoke up from his spot next to Optimus' foot.

The three older mechs exchanged a look between each other, Optimus was the one to explain," The Jolt you have come to know is not the Jolt that we know. On Cybertron Jolt...was put into a difficult situation, it did not end well and caused Jolt to recede into a less connectible personality. Jolt's present actions come from the personality that Jolt is most known for."

Tools, Mikeala, Sam and Leo listened in wide eyed surprise. To hear that Jolt use to be a more likeable fun going character was unexpected. But from what they'd just witnessed it could only be the truth. Letting out a sigh through his nose Tools told them," Okay, I won't stop him. But I at least want to see what he's doing."

"I say we all go and see. Jolt use to come up with the most twisted pranks and jokes." Sideswipe's words did nothing to reassure Tools. Everyone agreed and switched to alt mode. Everyone meant everyone that had witnessed the chase since Bumblebee, Skids and Mudflap had joined the group to listen. Tools rode with Ratchet while the other three went with Bumblebee. Optimus taking the lead they followed after Jolt's signature.

**-Out by the Ocean-**

"I am so going to dent the crap out of you when you're sleeping Jolt!" This was Roxie's tenth threat since being brought out of the main hangar, now with justifiable cause.

While the others were being told of Jolt's personality change he had taken Roxie down to the beach. He didn't tell her anything and let her figure things out for herself He first bent a palm tree so that it hung over the water a decent way out so it wasn't shallow. He then reached into an arm compartment to pull out a long piece of rope. He knew when she figured it out because she started thrashing and cursing with more vigour It took little effort to restrain her arm and tie the rope around her upper torso. The other end of the rope he tied to the tree so she hung over the water like a tire swing. Using a very small blade he made the tiniest cuts in the rope between the tree and Roxie. Finished he sighed in content," There. Hope your comfy, because my calculations say that you should drop into the water in about twenty minutes. If you struggle you might shorten it to fifteen. See you later...Little Rock." Jolt then walked away with a gait in his step.

"JOLT! YOU! ARE! SO! DEAD!" Jolt merely waved while continuing on pass the arriving group. He sent both sets of twins a request that they keep her up there until she fell on her own. They of course agreed.

Hopping out of Ratchet Tools called out," You okay Roxie?" She just glared with an embarrassed blush. Both sets of twins were laughing hysterically and the other four made no move to help her down. _'He must have convinced them to keep me up here dammit!'_

"Take any pictures and I will take you apart." The threat was made directly to Ironhide since he had been the one to reveal the possession of the Fairy Plane picture. Ironhide smiled smugly and took three pictures, one for himself, one for Will, and one for black mail.

It was then that Roxie noticed the new people," Uh, hi. Awesome first impression right? I'm Roxanne, but you might as well call me Pinata right now. According to the jerkbot that put me up here I'll be able to shake your hand in fifteen to twenty minutes. In the mean time you're welcome to keep me company. Or, you could be my new best friends and get me down!" Mikeala felt kinda bad for her. Yet she couldn't find it in herself to step forward and help, it wasn't every day you saw another teenager hanging from a palm tree due to a giant alien robot's sense of humour.

"Nope, you aren't getting down with any help except for gravity." Sunstreaker and Sideswipe made themselves comfortable on either side of the hanging human, Sunstreaker a little further than his brother. Roxie moaned in defeat and let herself go limp in the rope.

Optimus could tell the twins to stand down and help Roxanne, but didn't. He was sure that Roxanne would understand his decision later...After she'd been freed and had taken most of her frustration out on Jolt. He gave her an apologetic smile and left, Ratchet did the same but with the promise of speaking to Jolt about humans and sun damage. Ironhide left laughing to find Will. Bumblebee and the humans decided to stay and keep Roxie company. The twins agreed to switch with Sunstreaker and Sideswipe in ten minutes.

"Hi, I'm Leo Spitz, nice to meet you." Everyone rolled their eyes and optics, Leo would use this chance to start hitting on her. Tools, sitting on the sand, nudged Leo with his foot to get his attention. In the sand Tools had written 'Dibs. Witness = Glen' and an arrow pointing to himself.

"Don't listen to him, his real name is Chia Pet Head."Skids pointed to Leo's curly short trimmed black hair, Roxie had to giggle at this. From her viewing point the guy's head did indeed resemble a Chia Pet.

Spinning on the twins with a glare Leo hissed," We talked about this. That nickname does not belong to me outside of the island or around cute girls."

"Yea, well we're still on the island and there ain't no cute girls here 'cept Mikeala and she taken." Mudflap's come back had Sunstreaker and Sideswipe chuckle with a low 'BUURRN!'

Wiggling in the ropes and making herself swing back and forth Roxie growled," Skirts and Buttflap, you just got put in second place on my Punishment List. The second I get out of these ropes your shiny metal asses are mine!"

"I'm shaking in my armour! Puh-lease girl, you think we should be scared of you?" It was a pretty fair question that had all people and aliens present looking up at Roxie for the answer.

Smiling gruesomely Roxie answered," Go onto Facebook, sign in under , password is sadpanda20. Then look at the pictures in a folder called 'She Did It Again,' All my handiwork." The five bots present did as she instructed step by step, Tools swore it was the freakiest thing to see five giant alien robots look at Roxie with wide optics of minor fear.

"What? Let us see Bee...Whoa, that is a lot of damage. Did you honestly do all that?" Sam pat his guardian on the ankle to remind him they couldn't all go on the internet in their brains. Bumblebee obliged and projected the first picture in the folder. It was a yellow used VW that had all cracked windows, a smashed front and it was parked on a lawn covered with lawn gnomes. Mikeala, a female mechanic, saw all the damage and felt like crying for the poor punch buggy.

The picture changed to an old brown Sunbird flipped upside down with what looked like a mail box on a post sticking out of the front windshield. This one made Tools look up at Roxie with a 'How?' expression, she only shrugged with her gruesome smile still in place.

The next picture was of the yellow bug, this time it was scratched to shit all along the one side, three of the tires were blown out and there appeared to be seaweed hanging off the side view mirrors. "And that is why I will NEVER have my car driver's license. Which I have no complaints against."

"Did you have a license to destroy these poor cars?" Sam asked with half a smile, Bee was slightly shaking, Mikeala and Tools had looked away as if repulsed.

"Actually all that happened when I was trying to get my license. Thankfully both of those cars were bought as sacrifices. After that third one my dad refused to pay for fixing it as well as paying for the driving instructor's hospital bills." The bots and two mechanics gave another shudder, they could only imagine what those driving instructors went through.

_**'I don't know about you man, but I'm locking myself up tonight.' **_Mudflap sent this to Skids through their personal twin bond. Skids nodded in agreement, but neither of them were going to admit that the little human female had scared them decently.

"Is it true you have super hearing? I know with giant alien robots standing in front of me I shouldn't be surprised by anything else that comes into existence." Sam felt changing the subject would put everyone back at ease as they waited for gravity to pull Roxie free.

"Unfortunately yes, I am a freak of nature thanks to family genetics. I take it you are Sam, and Mikeala since Leo has already made himself known." Leo smiled happily at being called by name and not Chia Pet Head.

"_Sweet little Bumblebee." _An audio clipping from Bumblebee made Roxie smile over at him. "I was just about to ask about you. I thought I met all the Autobots my first day here. So your name is Bumblebee? Cute." Mikeala laughed as Bumblebee ducked his head with a smile, it seemed all the females that saw him in his bi-pedal mode called him cute.

Sideswipe and Sunstreaker silently huffed, they were without a doubt the coolest of the Autobots but no one ever told them so. Well Tools had his first day on base, then he called them everything but cool since they'd dumped an oil drum of freezing water filled with pickles all over him as a way of welcoming him.

"Roxie what did you do to make Jolt do THIS? The split second I saw of you you were washing his hood." Since the discussion wasn't really heading anywhere Tools asked for clarification. All he could think of was that she'd really pissed him off or somehow made him really happy.

"Yes, we'd like to know that as well." The group looked around and found that the triplets had joined them. Ironhide had sent Chromia a copy of the picture when she'd asked where Roxie had gone.

Giving her motorcycle girlfriends a hopeful smile she answered," I really just got into a water fight with him. He was laughing at me so I sprayed him with the hose, he threw the bug covered sponge at me and laughed more, so I got him right in the face. Then he chased me down and did this...You're not going to help me down, are you?" Apologetic smiles on their faces the triplets shook their heads, earning another miserable moan from Roxie.

"If you can get yourself really swinging you'll get down from there faster." Arcee had focused on the rope and assessed that with some momentum she'd get herself down in three minutes.

Taking her advice Roxie started swinging her legs back and forth, slowly she began to get her whole body in motion. Sunstreaker, Sideswipe, Skids, Mudflap and Bumblebee followed her movement in a kind of trance, their heads swinging back and forth in time with her.

Chromia motioned for the humans to go over to them to talk quietly. Keeping her voice low she told them," Sarah and Annabelle Lennox will be arriving in an hour or two. We called you all here to have a party for Annabelle since events prevented us from attending the day of. Could you go to the community centre and help Glen and Maggie set up? Tools we want to have a separate word with you first." Leo, Sam and Mikeala set off for the building that the Autobots and humans used as a recreational centre, but was referred to as the community centre.

Tools crossed his arms when they were alone," You set me up earlier. I got my ear chewed off by both Simmons and Will."

"Well that was an added bonus. We were hoping Ironhide would catch you." Chromia giggled at what Will and Simmons could have told the younger man.

"You should thank us for that, and Jolt for this. I saw you getting an eye full when we first got here so don't try and deny it." Arcee gave Tools a playful nudge when his face took on a red tint.

"Consider that a freebie though. Starting tomorrow you are to act like a proper mech if you want to court her. If we catch you pursuing her when she doesn't want the attention we won't be very nice femmes. Understand?" Chromia said all this while waving her cannon arm in Tools' face.

'SNAP' "WHOA!" 'SPLASH!' "Do I have permission to help her out of the water before she drowns?" The triplets nodded and Tools took off. He got to her just as her head went under for a second time. Legs could only do so much to keep a person afloat.

Tools trudged up out of the water holding Roxie in his arms bridal style as tightly as possibly without holding her. Though it wasn't the best of circumstances he would cherish that moment for as long as possible. Up on the sand he sadly put her on her feet so Flareup could cut the ropes around her upper torso. Coughing up some of the water she'd swallowed she smiled up at Tools," Thanks, I almost had a panic attack thinking I was going to drown."

"That wasn't likely to happen with so many of us present. And the water wasn't deep enough for you not to get some footing and propel yourself towards the shore." Sideswipe corrected the silly human of her ridiculous fear. This only earned him a reproachful flare from Arcee and Flareup.

Chromia scooped up Roxie and cradled her in her arms," Let's go get you changed into a dry outfit, if you have any dry clean clothes left." Roxie didn't protest and let herself get carried away.

Sighing Tools stripped off his wet blue shirt then his white muscle shirt, letting his lean and well trained upper body get kissed by the sunlight. Throwing them up on a beach he flopped onto the sand. "What's your problem?" Sunstreaker and Sideswipe recognized the behaviour as a sign of sulking. Mudflap, Skids and Bumblebee left to see if they could help with the party set up.

"I think Primus is playing a really messed up prank on me. I meet the girl of my dreams but she has a line up of people and Autobots body guarding her. First there's Simmons her godfather, then Will and apparently Sarah, then comes Ironhide, he had a nice "chat" with me, and now the triplets! How fair is THAT?" Tools had listed off the number of beings he needed approval from and groaned at the numerous fingers he had raised.

"That's nothing to complain about. On Cybertron femmes are few, so if you wanted to court one you had to fight off the six or seven other mechs that wanted her." Sunstreaker couldn't believe the kind of things that humans had to complain about. Put them on Cybertron, and then they would have something to complain about.

"There's a simple solution. Don't worry about those that stand in your way, just work on winning her spark. Secure that and she can deal with all those bodyguards." Tools put Sideswipe's advice into consideration. Taking into account that Roxie seemed to be a very resilient stubborn girl and the idea looked like it had a good chance of working.

He sat up and smiled at his fellow pranksters," You guys are the best, you already know that,but just thought I should say it. Wanna help me get back at Jolt on Roxie's behalf?" The smile of gratitude morphed to a smirk of pure evil intentions, both mechs mirrored the smirk with a nod. Pranking Jolt was going to be a fun new challenge.

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**GG23: Raise your hand in a review if you love me for putting in Tools fanservice! :D Could not resist, he's too smexy not to implant half naked images in your minds. Sorry to any of my male readers xD**

**HELP: I'm not much of a prankster, so I would love it if you guys could throw me some ideas on how Tools, Sunstreaker and Sideswipe could pull one over on Jolt :D  
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	18. Happy Belated Birthday Annabelle

**GG23: Ugggh, computer viruses are sooo annoying! Because of the one on my laptop I had to use my boyfriend's computer to type this, and it did a number on my wrists and fingers :( Anyways, I am very pleased with the reception the last chapter got, and I thank you for your prank ideas. Here's a nice long chapter to show my graditude :3**

**THANKS TO:**

**Ultimateanime12: **You're idea, with a little of another reviewer's idea was the one I went with, it was brilliant and made me laugh xD

**Dontgotaclue88: **You're awesome for reviewing as always :3

**Tatyana Witwicky: **You know it wouldn't surprise me if Skids and Mudflap tried to water his head once xD

**Standout4Christ: **And don't he know it, but he gets a little relief in here :3

**Silverfire's Shadow: **Yea, I don't know much about Jolt either so a good portion of stuff in here is my own creation. If you enjoyed the last chapter's humour I'm thinking you'll enjoy this one as well :3

**Ironhide and Lennox: **I LOVE YOU FOR REVIEWING :D

**Tannerdarko: **Your idea was decent, but I think it would be obvious they weren't the real ones since they each have a signal.

**Uncertain-Angel: **Fraid not except for the one shot done by Faecat.

**Ironaft30: **Everyone needs to let loose sometimes, it just takes the right motivation xD

**Tailsdoll123: **A classic idea, but I'm sure the twins have used it on someone else already.

**Lilyou22: **I was interested in that soundtrack one, might use that in a one shot :3 Thank you for all your ideas, and reviewing twice because of them xD

**LynxbyLynx: **Unfortunately Jolt is not a jeep, thus destroying the Barbie idea. And Roxie IS interested in that hunka man meat (sorry for the degradation there Tools) but she doesn't want to get into anything yet cause she doesn't want it to be a rebound relationship if that makes sense.

**Supergirlprime: **Both ideas I am now saving just for a one shot where it's pranks galore, it is getting close to April 1st after all xD

**XxBlackEaglexX: **I took your glue idea and mixed it with Ultimateanime12's, thank you! :3

**Latina Shewolf: **As I've been telling others, some of your suggestions are being saved for a prank chapter :3 And it all seemed to work somehow, it all needed to be done and it just made the chapter so much fun to write. Glad to know you enjoyed it.

**At The Heart of the Storm: **Looking forward to your next review!

**Rylia: **Well here's my thinking, as we know the hearing mufflers are constructed from parts of Megatron. Megatron was dropped into the the abyss that I cannot remember the name of, three years later and the guy came torpedoing out of the water perfectly fine yet covered in star fish and stuff (which made me laugh.) So I think the hearing mufflers can withstand some minor wetness. Hope that answers your question :3

**Psyconinja7: **I'm just glad to hear from you, for the past few chapters I've been thinking 'Where's my ninja? D:' Hope you get your computer problems fixed soon!

**DISCLAIMER: HASBRO OWNS TRANSFORMERS/ IRONAFT30 OWNS TOOLS/ I OWN ROXANNE/**

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Chapter Seventeen – Happy Belated Birthday Annabelle**

Changed into her last pair of jeans that Chromia cut into capris and her second last clean shirt that was just plain navy blue Roxie was ready to face the rest of the afternoon and hopefully remain dry. "Chromia do you know where I can find Will or Optimus? I need to ask about something."

"They should both be in the community centre. Is it anything I could help with?" Chromia didn't show it but Roxie's inquiry to the leaders' positions worried her. Whenever someone wanted to talk to Will or Optimus it was to ask about getting someone on base, or to ask if they could leave. Roxie didn't look upset about Jolt's method of revenge but they'd come to learn that Roxanne Glitch is very good at hiding things.

"Not unless you could take me off base and back. I want to ask about going to my house so I can grab a few things, like my other set of batteries for my hearing mufflers." Roxie tapped her left hearing muffler with a frown, she was sure they'd last until the next morning at least but the strength had weakened another notch in the past hour. A bad sign for her and her ears.

"Oh. Nope, unfortunately that is Optimus' call. You'll definitely need a guardian and a soldier to escort you. We could also send someone to get those things for you?" The thought of Roxie leaving her watch and protection to be an open target for the human government and Decepticons was out of the question. Chromia would be damned if she ever let any of those threats come near her friend again.

"Uh, I'd rather take the risk and get them myself. I don't really like the appreciate the thought of some G.I Joe collecting my underwear and bras for me. Plus I'm the only one that can get my batteries, I have a secret hiding place secured with a thumb scanner." Femme and female laughed at the image of some beefed up soldier as big as Epps putting panties and bras in a bag with a blush and mutterings of never taking special ops jobs again.

Entering the community centre Roxie was puzzled to see the walls and ceiling covered with streamers and balloons. When her sight fell on a banner that read 'Happy Birthday Annabelle' her jaw dropped. "Annabelle is coming here? Why didn't anyone tell me? Can you drive me back to Tools' work room? I need to get working on her birthday present now!"

"What about talking to Optimus or Will?" Chromia transformed to her alt bike and took off once Roxie was seated.

"I can talk to them about it later, Annabelle comes first. How long do I have before she gets here?" Back in the main hangar Roxie hopped off and bounced from foot to foot.

"The chopter will get here in roughly an hour or two. Will that be enough time?"

"Not without help. Find Tools and bring him here for me will you?" Roxie didn't wait for a reply and ran for the work room. Shaking her head a little Chromia went off to find Tools.

Ten minutes later a sore Tools entered the work room. Rubbing his chaffed back he asked," You need help with something Roxie?"

"Yea, can you straighten out these wires following the blue print? I need to finish getting the buttons and USB attachment installed into the casing….What's wrong with your back?" Roxie had explained and worked at the same time. When she went to hand Tools the blue print she noticed him rubbing his back with a pained expression.

"Chromia took your words literally…Wow, this is really cool. Is it just going to be an MP3 player?" Tools took the wires and blue print to his table and looked over the design more carefully.

Her hands moving and her concentration on the task Roxie mumbled back," Just till she'd old enough to need a cellular device. If she wants I'll add in cellular components but she'll need a headset to use it." Tools blinked at the girl in awe, he somehow kept forgetting that Roxie was his ideal girl for more than one reason. Determined not to let her down he put his hands to work.

As the time went the project was slowly put together piece by piece. After almost an hour and a half Roxie and Tools collapsed in their seats. On Roxie's desk sat a shiny black truck MP3 player. The back of the truck could be removed to plug the device into a computer and add music to it. The trickiest part had been the headphone jack since Roxie's cellplayer worked in reverse with the plugging. A huge smile on her face she turned it to Tools," Thanks, I owe you one for your help…And sorry for punching you, I just wasn't in control of my emotions."

'_And Simmons said she doesn't apologize….Primus she's adorable with a blush! Bruise or not this is the best day of my life.' _Tools thought all this as Roxie glanced away twiddling her thumbs.

"Don't worry Roxie, everyone has their break downs. I've had a few myself. You didn't break anything so it's all good. As for owing me….I think we should be even right about now." Tools went over to Roxie and smiled down at her sincerely at first, the lighting and a cruel curve to the corner of his mouth made Roxie wonder if she wasn't in the presence of the Devil himself. _'I'm not going to ask, something tells me I'll know soon enough.' _She collected the present and walked with Tools to the community centre.

They were half way to the building when two things happened at once. First, much to Roxie's disgust/ twisted pleasure Jolt went flying past them to the wash pit covered in what looked like melted marshmallows and flies. Since her attention was on the fleeing Jolt she didn't see Flareup come over to them with a certain person. "GLITCH!" With little warning to brace herself Roxie hit the tarmac upon impact from behind.

"Annabelle, I think you are by far the best tackle hugger on Earth." Though her face stung from kissing the tarmac she still smiled at the little girl clinging to her backside.

Annabelle waited until Roxie sat up and faced her to hug her properly," I missed you Glitch, I thought I was never going to see you again."

"I'm so sorry Annabelle. Not only did I break my promise to come back with your dad but I couldn't hug you on your birthday. I'm such an awful babysitter and friend. Can you forgive me?" Roxie held Annabelle at arm's length to see that Annabelle was actually thinking about forgiving her.

"I forgive you Glitch, Daddy told me it was the bad helicopter's fault that you broke your promise…Flareup said you didn't come say hi because you were making my birthday present. Is it done?" No matter what the situation is, if a child knows about a present they will ask about it.

Laughing Roxie went into her pocket and pulled out the small metal truck," Happy birthday Annabelle. What do you think?"

Eyes glittering in pure happiness Annabelle took the little truck to inspect," It's so neat! I've never seen a music player like this. Thank you Glitch."

"Say thanks to Tools too, he helped me finish it in time." Tools being a bit sturdier than Roxie was able to remain standing when Annabelle tackle hugged him.

Picking her up he hugged the little girl properly. The image they made caused Roxie to briefly think, _'He'd make a great dad….Bad! Bad train of thought!' _Annabelle and Tools raised an eyebrow when Roxie began violently shaking her head.

"I want to show Mom, Dad, and Ironhide my Baby 'Hide. Can you give me a piggyback ride Glitch? Your back is more comfortable than everybody else's." Tools and Flareup snickered at the bestowed name to the MP3 player. Tools felt just a smidge bad for Ironhide, at the rate Annabelle was receiving things shaped like trucks he was going to have a massive family named after him.

Annabelle on her back Roxie felt great, she'd really missed the little girl, she was just too cute and spunky not to love. Flareup stayed next to Roxie to watch the two girls interact, Chromia and Ironhide had said that they were pretty much sisters in behaviour. Tools kept an eye on them too, he's played and hung out with Annabelle before in the past year. He was an only child and playing Annabelle was like playing with a little sister he'd just been living away from. Roxie had a peaceful smile on her face despite Annabelle's choke hold on her neck,_' Roxie will be a great mom...I already envy the man that will be her husband.'_

Annabelle couldn't be happier, she was with her friend again, she'd gotten an incredible gift and she was getting a birthday party with all the Autobots. From Roxie's back she looked over at Tools and saw he was smiling at Roxie. The smile was a lot like the one that Sam gave Mikeala. This thought in mind Annabelle asked purely out of curiosity," Glitch, is Tools your boyfriend now?"

"H-huh? N-no! He' just my friend Annabelle." Roxie's face was the brightest shade of red yet, she refused to look over at Tools to see his reaction. Flareup had moved further away in order to try and fight off her laughter, as well as to stay out of Roxie's arm reach while she told Arcee and Chromia.

"Oh okay. But Tools would make a good boyfriend, right Tools?" Annabelle really liked Tools, and didn't see any reason for Roxie to not like him. Tools couldn't stop smiling, with Annabelle as a supporter he'd get a good chance against Ironhide, Will and Sarah.

"Actually I've only had two girlfriends, and both of them dumped me. So I can't claim to be a good boyfriend until I've tried."He flicked his gaze to Roxie and saw she was focused on him with what he thought was consideration.

Hearing Tools admit that he'd been dumped drew Roxie's attention, the guy seemed to polite and nice to warrant dumping. She'd looked over to see if being dumped still bothered him, she didn't know what to make of him being completely fine with it. Caught staring she looked away but not fast enough to avoid seeing hope in Tools' eyes as he said he would like to try.

Walking into the community centre gave Roxie another warning sign that her batteries were running dangerously low. The day she had woken up on base she'd introduced herself to the Autobots without her hearing mufflers. Without them on she could hear the hum of their sparks crystal clear. In the community centre all the bots (minus Jolt) were present and almost just as loud. Roxie put Annabelle down and walked with her over to Sarah, Will and Ironhide. Sarah grabbed her in a hug as soon as she was close enough. Holding her tight Sarah sighed," Oh I've been so worried. How are you? How's your head? Ratchet said it's not serious and you can take off that bandage soon."

"Sarah, I'm okay. I'd completely forgotten about the injury it's that fine. How have things been going on the farm? Agent Steep and Agent Stone haven't bothered you yet have they?"

"Mommy, Daddy look at what Glitch and Tools gave me. It's baby 'Hide." Annabelle help up the truck shaped MP3 player for Sarah and Will to see better. She'd deliberately interrupted so they wouldn't talk about bad things when it should be a fun day.

Turning it this way and that Will mumbled," That's some really nice metal work. It doesn't weigh that much either...Did you say Roxie and Tools?" Will gave Tools a suspicious look, Tools in turn pointed to Roxie in explanation.

"Annabelle, must you name it after me? You already have Mini 'Hide." Sunstreaker and Sideswipe were now snickering at Ironhide instead of laughing at their successful prank on Jolt. With Annabelle present Ironhide couldn't threaten or pull his cannons on them, Sarah had given him a stern talking to about proper interactions with others in front of children. Annabelle looked up to Ironhide as a role model, so he needed to present himself in an acceptable image.

Frowning in thought Annabelle tilted her head," Well, Glitch and Tools did make it for me. So its their baby, and they should name it." Off to the side Simmons spit out the water he'd been drinking, the triplets burst into hysterics and Ratchet seemed to freeze in place.

_'My ally just made things worse for me. I'll be lucky if Simmons even lets me talk to her after today.' _Crying on the inside Tools cleared his throat," Roxie did most of the work, she can have the honour of naming her creation."

_'Thank you Tools!' _Roxie just about had a heart attack when the room had gone rather quiet and all attention had turned on her and Tools. "Okay…Hm…I had to do a lot of grinding to get the shape, so why don't we go with Grindor?"

"Grindor? I like it. Does Grindor have any music?" Will and Sarah smiled as the air of the room settled down again. They were all together to celebrate Annabelle's birth, a birthday shouldn't feel tense or awkward.

'CLUNK' 'THUNK' "OW! What the-?...Oh. Hey Jolt, see you got most of the gunk off." Sideswipe and Sunstreaker were rubbing their dented helms from where Jolt had expressed his dislike of their marshmallow, glue, and bug concoction.

Most of the stuff had come off with much vigorous scrubbing, but there were placed along his creases and gears that still had white spots. Slightly calmer having done some physical damage Jolt growled," I'll get you three back. Oh yea Tools, I know you were involved." Roxie, Will and Sarah snickered when the full grown man stepped behind Annabelle casually. Pleased with this response Jolt continued on to talk to Ratchet and Bumblebee.

"As I was about to say. No, there's no music on it yet Annabelle. We just finished putting Grindor together after all. Once you get home your mom or Dad can put over 100 songs on it for you." Roxie absorbed the excitement and glee that radiated off of Annabelle at the news that so many songs could be stored on such a small device.

"Hey Annabelle, bet I can beat you at Motorcross now!" Heads turned to where Sam, Leo and Glen sat on one of the human couches facing a large screen TV with various game consoles attached to it.

Growing up with Ironhide had taught Annabelle many things, one of them being to never back down from a challenge. Chin set the small blonde girl accepted," You will never beat me Sam! Come watch me win Glitch."

"Wouldn't miss it for the world girl." Smirking at this interesting form of entertainment Roxie joined the group of teens that she just knew would get their butts handed to them, apparently again. She could tolerate the high pitched frequencies from the tech for a little bit.

Simmons joined Sarah, Will and Epps by the table set up with cake and juice. His focus on the back of Roxie's head he told the parents quite sincerely," Thank you, both of you."

"For what Simmons?" Both Lennox' were confused.

"For watching out for Roxanne. You could have treated her like any other babysitter, but you took care of her like a daughter."

Understanding that this was appreciation coming from one parental figure to another they didn't argue. Though Sarah felt an explanation would be appropriate even if the nearest bots heard it as well. " She was a lost, frightened and hurt child Simmons. It's my job as a mother to help her. And to be honest she might as well be our daughter. Roxie and Annabelle act like they've been sisters from day one of knowing each other. Annabelle was so worried about her when she heard about the attack."

"The same thing happened with Roxie. You should have seen how hectic she was when she learned that she'd woken up on Annabelle's birthday. Ratchet was just about ready to sedate her." Will laughed at the memory of a frantic Roxie and a distraught Ratchet.

"Would…Would it be too much to ask for her to stay with you? Just until I find her an apartment close to my place." Simmons wasn't usually a man to ask for help, but for his adopted niece he would suck up his pride and ego just to make sure she was safe and protected.

"Of course Simmons, Roxie will always be welcome with us. It would make Annabelle so happy." Sarah took Simmons' hand and clasped it tight in a gesture of reassurance and promise.

"Don't mean to be a killjoy, but you seem to be forgetting why Roxanne has been staying here." Ironhide had patiently listened to the conversation to see if they would remember themselves. Catching no hint or mention he felt it was only right to bring them back to the present.

Letting go of Simmons' hand Sarah turned on the hulking black mech in maternal mode," How long do you think it will be until the Decepticons stop pursuing her? As far as I understand it, there isn't even a reason for them to be targeting her."

"This may be true Sarah, but all the same she is being targeted. And with Megatron being the one that holds the most to gain from her capture it is safe to assume that they will not stop until she is given to Megatron." Optimus had joined the conversation to ensure that Ironhide did not have to deal with an enraged Sarah all by himself.

Hugging herself Sarah turned her gaze back to the now laughing teenagers," I just wish there was more I could for her."

"I believe Roxie would tell you you've done more than enough and then some. She wouldn't have trusted you to help her that day she got hurt. Just keep being there for her Sarah, and you'll be doing plenty to help her." Arcee spoke and approached Sarah along with Chromia and Flareup. Arcee put a hand on Sarah's shoulder to convey that they had been thinking the same thing. Sarah nodded, she would do just that and whatever else Roxie would need from her.

"What's the matter Glitch?" All heads turned to see Roxie walking away from the group towards the far corner, her hearing mufflers clutched in her hands.

Sensing their eyes Roxie quickly told the bots," Whatever you do, no not scan me right now or at all if possible. My hearing mufflers are officially dead and I do not want to know how much louder your scans would be without them to block the majority of the noise. I'm okay Annabelle, I just need to stay away from the TV and X-Box for a little bit." As she spoke Roxie continued to walk backwards until she stopped at a random spot close to the wall.

Out of the immediate radius where minor technology could be heard over the Autobots Roxie felt much better. It just bothered her that she had to put distance between herself and the others, especially Annabelle who had just about won.

Annabelle could see the distress on Roxie's face from the distance that Roxie had put between them. It was her birthday and she wanted to share it with all her friends. "Can we turn off the TV and X-Box? I want to play outside." The teens saw no problem with this and smiled at the little girl, she was by far the best of them out of the whole group. They not only turned off the TV and X-Box 360 but they unplugged everything as well to see if that helped at all.

"Glitch come on! We're going outside to play with my chalk, last one out has to roll around in chalk dust!" Annabelle was running for the doors as she called out to Roxie, making sure to give herself a head start. The teenagers, having not been told this extra bit of information all scrambled after her. Roxie running right along with them.

"You got one heck of a daughter Lennox. My kids need to hang out with her more." Epps pat Will on the back and laughed with the others when Sam and Leo somehow managed to trip each other and both end up losing the race.

Outside the teens gawked at the size of Annabelle's chalk box. It was the same size as a checker board and had ten of every colour possibly made for chalk. "Where did you get an awesome set like this? I've never seen a package this size, even from Crayola."

"Mr. and Mrs. Epps got it for me for my birthday. Mrs. Epps said it was specially ordered. We should have a drawing contest. Winner gets to keep the left over cake and loser has to have cake put on their face." Annabelle giggled at the dreamy smile everyone got at the thought of having left over birthday cake for the next couple of days. The loser's punishment didn't even reach their minds.

"You should let Sunstreaker be the judge." The dream was shattered by Ratchet's voice. The medic had been concerned about Roxie's hearing and without scans he didn't know what her condition would be like without the hearing mufflers.

"Right, Sunstreaker is an artist, his work is really something too. What do you say Sunstreaker? Be our judge?" Tools, one of the few lucky beings to have seen Sunstreaker's art agreed with this decision. Though the gold Ferrari could be pretty self centered he never let his opinions on art become biased. Meaning Annabelle wouldn't win even with it being her birthday.

"Whatever, I don't have anything better to do. I'll give you an hour to finish something, if it's not complete by then then you're disqualified." Ratchet had commd Sunstreaker to join them outside to see if he would agree. He stayed behind Ratchet but found the idea to be interesting, it had been a while since he'd seen any Earthling artwork.

The terms were fair and accepted. The participants grabbed their colours and broke off to claim a space of tarmac far enough from each other so they didn't invade on someone else's drawing.

_**'I'm betting high grade on that Tools wins.' **_Sideswipe started the bets once Sunstreaker went back in and told everyone what was happening outside with the humans. Being the judge Sunstreaker respectfully didn't place a bet himself. The triplets wagered on Mikeala, Roxie and Maggie. Skids, Mudflap and Bumblebee bet on Sam, Leo and Glen. Being loyal Ironhide bet on Annabelle, earning a fond smile from Chromia. Ratchet placed his bet on Tools, and Optimus joined in with Arcee by betting on Mikeala.

The hour felt like minutes to the participants but they all managed to finish in time. "Alright, let's see what you consider art." Roxie was the closest so he started with her.

Roxie had gone with chibi anime style and drew herself standing on top of a poorly drawn flipped over Jolt in his alt mode and her chibi self was making the peace sign. "3.5 for being amusing." Roxie gave him a bit of a pout but didn't argue, she had little to no artistic talent.

Moving onto Annabelle he smirked, the kid knew how to appeal for points. She'd drawn a blocky Sunstreaker with his swords fighting Ironhide who she'd drawn the outline of with white and let the black tarmac count as the colour. "5 for being smart." Annabelle beamed at the compliment and having outdone Roxie so far.

Next came Glen. The super hacker had drawn his favourite red and gold sports jersey, but the numbers had been replaced with a gold Autobot emblem on the chest and sleeves. The whole thing was done well but wasn't very unique, "5.5 for decent realism." Glen had hoped at least 6.5 but he at least beat the youngest participants.

"3, and I'm being generous." Sunstreaker had merely glanced at Leo's and wanted to blast it into a crater. Leo had decided to draw Roxie, Mikeala, and Maggie wearing bikinis and holding a sign reading 'Go to ' the girls were drawn poorly, and it was low class art. The girls had come over, saw the picture and glared at him heatedly.

Maggie's picture was very interesting. She'd drawn a laptop complete with the exact number of keys on the keyboard, on the screen she had the Autobots' emblem composed of slashes and dashes. "7 for detail." Maggie let out a little "yes!" and grinned at Glen. She loved it when she could outdo Glen at something since he could always outdo her at video games and hacking.

"What are you, a femme? 4.5" Sunstreaker had gone over to Sam's and had crossed his arms to glare at the boy.

Confused Sam looked from his drawing of a cute little bee with a cannon strapped to its back," What? I thought it was cool."

"You need to relearn the definition of cool Witwicky." Sunstreaker rolled his optics and continued on to Mikeala's.

His head tilted to the side in consideration Sunstreaker scanned over the picture. She had drawn the Matrix of Leadership with the Autobot emblem over the center allowing the light to show through the eyes. Light radiated all around the whole image, it was in its entirety a picture of hope. He gave a small nod," 8.5." Since everyone had high grade on the line the Autobots had come out to hear the results themselves. When Sunstreaker announced Mikeala's score Optimus and Arcee gave each other a high five (which was quite amusing to see what with Optimus having hands almost as big as Arcee.)

Last came Tools and he looked completely confident despite hearing Mikeala's score. Sunstreaker had expected what Tools had done. Tools was known for being able to draw gadgets and weapons just fine on blue print, however his true artistic talent lied in graffiti. True to this Tools had graffitied the word 'AUTOBOT' big, bulky and colourful to the point where it could be said to be exploding. The circle that would be in the middle of the 'o's was replaced by the Autobot emblem. "7.9." Tools froze, then dramatically slouched. He recovered quickly enough and shook Mikeala's hand in a show of good sportsmanship.

"That done, Sam, Leo start rolling around in the chalk. Leo, you get cake in the face when we get to cake eating." Roxie had put Annabelle back up on her back and Annabelle whispered these orders in her ear to give, she didn't have the big girl boss voice to do it herself.

Sam and Leo looked down at their clothes and sighed. For a reason they now regretted both university boys had worn white shirts. But they were men of honour and wouldn't back down. The girls and Glen laughed as they watched their shirts change from pristine white to yellow, pink, purple, blue and green. "Now that gets 10, 5 points for each of them." Leo and Sam frowned up at the gold mech, looked at each other, nodded, and ran straight for him. "DON'T YOU DARE!" Each boy went for a wheel and body checked it. It hurt like a bitch but their shirts left beautiful chalk prints. Acting like the organicphobe he was Sunstreaker ran for the wash pit to remove the humans traces from his body. Proud of their handy work the lot of them returned inside to eat cake and be merry. For about the next two and a half hours.

It was about 6pm and Annabelle was getting sleepy from travelling and doing so much in one day. Curled up in Sarah's arms Annabelle waved a sleepy hand," Good night everyone. Glitch, will I see you in the morning before I go home?"

"Of course, I don't have another present to make for you. Sweet dreams Captain Annabelle." Roxie gave Annabelle a peck on the cheek before letting her go off to bed.

"Alright, time for energon!" All at once each both opened a compartment in their arms to pull out small oil drums.

Head tilted to the side Roxie went over to Tools for answers," What's that? Autobot alcohol?"

"Heh, only if they drink more than they need. Best way to describe it is that it acts like fuel and blood for them. They can't function properly if they're low but when they drink too much they become complete drunks. It's hysterical but dangerous for us." While Tools explained Roxie watched the bots start to chug the stuff, it was interesting to see energon was a vibrant blue green colour.

The closest bot standing next to Roxie was Ironhide, and she didn't notice at first but the more he consumed the louder he seemed to get. By the time he had finished Roxie had stepped further away from him. _'Ow, ow. What the hell is making so much noise? The TV and X-Box 360 are still unplugged…It's coming from Ironhide? But…Ugh! The triplets? Even Ratchet? WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?'_

Roxie was screaming in her mind but on the outside she did her best to appear fine. Everyone was having a good time, she didn't want to ruin it for them. Thinking it had something to so with proximity she went more towards Maggie and Mikeala who were off to the side more. Getting closer Roxie began to make out a smaller noise akin to the Autobots. The table had effectively been blocking a small remote controlled truck that sat in Mikeala's lap. Eyebrow raised and finger pointing she asked,"…Wheelie? Where have you been hiding this whole time?"

The tiny truck transformed and jumped up on the table," Who da heck are you? How'd you know my name, huh? Who is this Warrior Goddess?"

Fighting back the urge to flick the tiny bot's head Mikeala explained," Don't mind him, he used to be a Decepticon drone. He's been sleeping somewhere I don't know about, he's like a cat. Wheelie this is Roxanne, be nice or I'll find that collar for you again."

"Alright, alright. Cool your gears Warrior Goddess, just makin' sure she ain't a pretender. How'd you know my name Rocks?" Wheelie had rolled closer towards Roxie, something about her had a familiar feeling, but he couldn't pin point it. His suspicions were rising.

"She has acute hearing that lets her hear high pitched frequencies from anything electronic. Which includes you bots. Right Roxie?...Roxie? You okay?" Maggie had memorized the explanation for Roxie's condition to give her something to look into later when she had free time. When she looked to Roxie for confirmation she found the younger girl rubbing her temples.

The noises, which she realized were the once pleasant hummings from the Autobots, had increased further in volume. The force of the noise on her eardrums was making her head spin and concentration almost impossible. She'd just barely heard Maggie's question of concern," Yes! I'm fine! I-just need to get some air!" Without meaning to Roxie had yelled her reply, drawing attention from the rest of the humans.

"I think you need more than just some air Roxie, you're getting pretty pale." Mikeala was up on her feet, she put a hand on Roxie's forehead to try her temperature," Roxie you're burning up."

"I-I'm fine! I-I just need to get outside where it's quiet!" Roxie knew what was going on, and she could tell the others once she got outside and away from all the noise.

She took three shaky steps, Optimus drank some more energon, and Jolt saw her faint.

* * *

**GG23: Just thought you all should know that Ironaft30 has another piece of artwork done and posted on his DA account, in my personal opinion it should be called 'Tools' Dream' It kinda scares me xD It would be awesome if you guys could also give our joint project a look over! It's called 'Bridge to Nowhere!' Till next chapter!**


	19. Shore Leave, Part One

**J: Guess what this is duckies? This is PART ONE of the climax! Mwahahaha! I never intended it to be super long enough to be need to be broken down, but this way you get to start reading sooner :3 I had some time between classes, so I reposted this chapter to give thanks! :D**

**THANKS TO:**

**Silverfire's Shadow: **Since you've already read this chapter you know what happened to Roxie xD And yes, I am aware of Jolt's lack of information, thus why I'm just making him a history as I go along pretty much ahha. As for the chalk drawings, they wouldn't be extremely detailed or anything but the main picture can be produced.

**Tailsdoll123: **Thanks, I'm doing my best to keep Roxie from becoming the next Bella xD It helps that she grew up knowing about them so they're not that much of a novelty.

**Standout4Christ: **Do not fret, the Cons shall never know of the Diego Garcia base as long as I write this fanfiction! The explanation is in the beginning of this chapter :3

**Lilyou22: **I listened to the song and I agree with you, thank you for telling me about it :D

**At The Heart of the Storm: **Lol, don't worry I never pegged you for illiterate, your spelling was always right even in caps lol.

**Supergirlprime: **Don't judge Wheelie just yet hun, and yes that did appear to be a list lol. And a very good question. Roxie's batteries need to be put into a small device that resembles a recharger for rechargable batteries, but it doesn't plug into a wall it is solar recharged and takes 42 hours to charge.

**AutobotSyds643: **If they ever need to make some more money they can start the production of mini Hides and other Autobots xD And in Roxie's case high grade is not a good thing.

**Latina Shewolf: **XD I am doing my job right then if it put you on the floor laughing with tears. I'm doing my best to keep the serious and the funny even, but there will be more humour for the big climax :3

**Dontgotaclue88: **No fixing is required :3

**Moment-of-Reason: **Thanks Dude BD

**Psychoninja7:** Pop Rox? I am going to use that in a one shot or something :3

**LynxbyLynx: **I LOVE YOU FOR REVIEWING XD

**Ironhide and Lennox: **Lol, thanks for the short review that expresses your love.

**ChocoKoko: **You win for the shortest review ever lol!

**Mollie3: **xD There are always opportunities for such a thing to happen. And would indeed make quite a sum.

**Disclaimer: Hasbro owns TF. I own Roxanne. Ironaft30 owns Tools!  
**

* * *

**Chapter Eighteen - Shore Leave Part One**

_'__The amount of times I__'__m passing out is getting to be ridiculous.__'_This thought was expressed by an outward groan, "Hey Ratchet! She's waking up! Roxie, are you okay? Do you remember what happened?" It was Tools asking and helping her sit up.

Putting a hand to her head Roxie grumbled," Yes and I'll be remembering this for a long time. It's been years since that happened."

"Since what happened Roxanne? From out standing point you were perfectly fine one moment in the next you developed a fever and lost consciousness." Ratchet came over with Jolt from Tools' call, Tools was curious to see Jolt come along but didn't worry about it.

Wincing Roxie held up a hand and moaned," I'll explain if you take a few steps back." Ratchet and Jolt raised their optic ridges but still did as asked. Her expression relaxed the further back they went," That's fine, thank you…Okay, what happened was what you could call an overload. When you guys started to drink your energon the volume of your systems increased to the point where it was painful, and with all you being in the same room it only amplified it. It got to the point where my brain just couldn't handle the amount of sound pressure being put on it so it shut down. It use to happen once or twice a year before I got my hearing mufflers. I'm surprised Uncle Simian didn't remember it. Sorry if it caused any trouble."

"Yet another thing not added to your medical records. At least we know this for the future now. As for trouble, well you gave all the humans, Ironhide, the triplets and myself quite a scare. You were lucky Tools was able to catch you before you hit the floor or there might have been more damage." Ratchet wanted to add another name to the list of beings she'd given a fright but a sudden burst of negative intentions came through the comm that stopped him. Tools was already a target for the unmentioned mech, adding another reason to get in trouble with him wasn't something Tools wanted to deal with, so he bit his tongue on it.

The headache already beginning to ease off Roxie let Tools help her off the bed," I'll get apologizing then. But please tell me Annabelle hasn't left yet." The worry about breaking another promise to little Lennox looked ready to consume her into a deep depression.

"That was taken care of by Optimus. Aware of the depression it might have caused you he had the flight delayed until you were up and able to say goodbye to Annabelle." Ratchet's words wouldn't have brought her more relief than him telling her that Megatron was dead and launched into space.

"Awesome, I'll thank him for that when I go ask about leaving." Roxie stretched her hands above her head to ease her back from the stiff sleep she'd just had on the patient's bed.

"WHAT?" Both mechs and Tools were in complete disbelief. The girl just had a fainting spell, wakes up and announces she wants to go off the island to deal with Decepticons and the government.

"Ugh, could you three have yelled any louder? Geez! Jolt I told you about this already, but I guess you don't remember since you were enjoying yourself too much." This got a glare and "huff" from him, which only made Roxie smile larger in her triumph. "I talked to Chromia about it too. I'm not going to ask to permanently leave, I just want to go to my house, get some essentials and my batteries and I'll come right back."

"You will be doing no such thing, especially after that fainting spell. You are staying on this island and someone else can get your things." Ratchet was itching to grab a wrench, the only thing preventing him was the reminder that this was a human.

"Uh uh, not going to work. My batteries are hidden and protected by a thumb scanner. And you can't deny me from going or that would be holding me against my will with no legal reinforcement." Roxie had them there and they knew it. She could also tell that they didn't want to resort to legal means to make her stay for fear of bringing Galloway down on them.

"You only want to grab a few things and come right back?" Roxie nodded wondering where Tools was going with this. "Optimus will tell you this I'm sure but that shouldn't be a problem as long as a guardian and at least one armed soldier goes with you. Since I'm a field scout I can be that soldier, and you know I'm more than qualified for this kind of job Ratchet." Tools knew any other soldier could handle the escort mission just as well as he could, but he had a promise to keep to himself and to Roxie. Letting one of the other men do this would make it feel like he was slacking on his job.

Arms crossed Ratchet reminded the too eager soldier," That isn't your decision to make Tools. You need Will's clearance."

"Who needs my clearance for what? How long have you been up Roxie? Annabelle is about to have a fit if you don't go show her you're alright. Let the triplets and Ironhide know too while you're at it, I don't think the shooting range can take much more." Will had entered the Med Bay to see how Roxie was doing and to make sure Tools didn't plan on staying there the whole day. He'd just caught the last part of Ratchet's sentence on clearance, putting an unsettled feeling in his stomach.

"Roxanne wishes to return to shore to grab a few of her things including her extra batteries. Tools wants to be the soldier to escort her." Will's unsettled feeling had justification.

Will pointed to Roxie," You go reassure Annabelle and Sarah." He pointed at Tools," You, we need to talk." He put his pointer finger down and looked up at Ratchet," Could you please ask Boss Bot to join us so we can properly discuss this?" The last time Will had ordered Ratchet to do something he was banned from the Med bay for a couple of weeks, and Ironhide got a wrench thrown at him.

Hands up in surrender Roxie gladly left the Med bay, somehow she got the feeling that Tools was gonna get ripped a new one. _'__Not something I want to see or hear.__'_

"So just to be clear. You are volunteering to escort Roxie, you're not telling me you're going to do it. Right?" Will knew Tools was logical and could take orders, but sometimes soldiers let emotions get in the way of decision making. He wanted to be sure it wasn't happening with Tools.

"Yes, I'm just volunteering…Ten times over. Major Lennox you know I can handle an escort mission." Tools wasn't going to let someone else do his job. If Will assigned someone else he would do whatever he could to go along.

"You are qualified to do escort missions, yes. But those would be normal civilian, precious cargo, or prisoner escorts where they are being targeted by protestors or hit men. This escort mission would transcend that, we're talking government officials that have been after her for years, and they have the right to tell you to stand down. There are also Decepticons out there just waiting to kill you and the chosen guardian. An escort mission like this might actually call for more than one volunteer. Are you willing to handle these circumstances Private Harper?" Will watched Tools' eyes and face for any twitch or sign of doubt or fear about the decision he was making. Not a single muscle budged.

"I am willing and able to deal with these conditions Major Lennox." There was absolution in his voice, Will knew for sure that there was going to be no way to stop the guy from doing the job.

"…Request granted. But she better come back with every last hair on her head intact, got it?" Will had to throw in the fatherly addition, it only felt right.

Tools relaxed with a smile," I won't disappoint you, sir."

"Major Lennox, you requested to speak with me?" Both men had forgotten where they were and that they weren't alone. So of course they both jumped a bit from Optimus' voice.

Calming down Will looked up at the Autobot leader," Yes, Roxie has requested a shore leave to retrieve some items from her home. If you approve she'll need an escort."

"I see. I will speak to the others then, I'm sure this will not go over well with Chromia, Arcee and Flare Up though." Will and Tools sympathized with the big guy, they'd seen how worked up the triplets got when Roxie had fainted. They would probably have to save Roxie from the livid triplets if they got their hands on her.

With much dread Optimus sent out a gathering call to the other Autobots and to meet in the main hangar. Optimus, Ratchet and Jolt left with Will and Tools following behind. The men weren't surprised to see most of the bots present, including the triplets who looked ready to shoot at Optimus the moment he opened his mouth. Meaning Roxie had spoken to one of them about the idea of leaving and they guessed that this is what the meeting was about. Not wanting to be a casualty they headed off to the mess hall where Annabelle should be hugging Roxie.

Once the front liner twins arrived Optimus opened the to all of them. _**'**__**Roxanne Glitch has requested to take a shore leave to acquire some of her possessions. She will need a guardian for the duration of her leave. Are there any among you who would volunteer?**__**'**_

_**'**__**Unless I**__**'**__**m going she isn**__**'**__**t leaving.**__**'**_Chromia's immediate response was expected.

_**'**__**This has been discussed before Chromia, because of your alternate modes you are unable to keep a human properly sheltered during an attack.**__**'**_Optimus made sure it was worded that he didn't doubt her abilities to fight back but that it would be difficult to keep a rider safe when under fire.

_**'**__**Then I**__**'**__**m locking her in the brig and another human can get her things.**__**'**_ From Chromia's tone she fully intended to do this.

_**'**__**Chromia you cannot do that, it would be holding her against her will. Freedom is what we protect, not take away. Are there any other volunteers?**__**'**_If necessary Optimus would use his word as Prime to put Chromia on probation, but he never liked to do such things.

_**'**__**If I wasn**__**'**__**t already the guardian to the Lennox family I would do it. Is it possible for Will to go along with her?**__**'**_The idea was rather clever and put a spark of hope in Ironhide's mind. Like Chromia he wouldn't feel entirely comfortable about Roxanne's safety unless it was himself protecting her.

_**'**__**No, Gregory Harper has been assigned her human escort. And at present Willis expected to remain on base for the next month.**__**'**_Ratchet had witnessed the decision of Tools being chosen to be Roxanne's escort and said so, causing Ironhide to scowl.

_**'**__**Optimus, I will volunteer my services for the job. But only this job.**__**'**_All optics turned to stare incredulously at Jolt.

_**'**__**Are you certain of this decision Jolt? You will be given the responsibility of keeping Roxanne safe at all costs, even your life if absolutely necessary.**__**'**_Just as Will had watched Tools for any sign of indecision, Optimus watched Jolt's optics for an indication of uncertainty.

'_**I am sure of my decision, sir.**__**'**_He spoke the truth and Optimus felt it. Ratchet reinforced this decision with a nod, Ratchet believed this mission would further help Jolt become the mech he once was.

_**'**__**Very well, starting this moment until Roxanne has returned you are her guardian.**__**'**_Jolt gave a nod then left to further contemplate why he had volunteered, as far as he could understand it had felt right in his spark to do it.

Ironhide and Chromia weren't entirely comfortable with this decision. There was no doubt that Jolt could handle himself when under fire, the mech could even get quite ruthless at times. Their concern was that Jolt might forget to watch out for his human charge while fighting. _**'**__**Do not doubt Jolt just yet, he may be a new guardian but he knows what is at stake.**__**'**_Ratchet had seen the discomfort the two gun happy bots shared at the new development and spoke for his apprentice.

_**'**__**I don**__**'**__**t know if you noticed, but Jolt might actually be getting to like Roxie. You saw how he acted when she fainted yesterday.**__**'**_Flareup had been quite content with Jolt being Roxie's guardian. She'd been the closest one to Jolt when Roxie had fainted, she saw the worry and fear in his optics. No one else might have noticed that after Roxie had been put in the Med bay Jolt hadn't strayed very far from the doorway.

_**'**__**Hmph. Fine, I**__**'**__**ll give Jolt the benefit of the doubt. He**__**'**__**ll deal with me and my cannons if that girl comes back damaged at all though.**__**'**_Ironhide grumbled this while walking off, Chromia right next to him.

Since the other Autobots had dispersed as well Optimus took the chance to speak only to Ratchet, _**'**__**How do you think this mission will effect Jolt?**__**'**_

_**'**__**That all comes down to how the mission goes over, and how well they get along off base.**__**'**_Ratchet hoped that nothing would happen to sour the growing friendship between Jolt and Roxanne. From what he'd seen both mech and human quite enjoyed each other's company, but for appearances didn't openly show it.

_**'**__**Then we will just have to wait and see. I will speak to the air captain, it would be fitting for Roxanne to leave on the same flight as Sarah and Annabelle.**__**'**_Optimus set off to do as he said, letting Ratchet go speak to Jolt to make sure he had all the newest info on human first aid treatment. He had a nagging feeling in his spark that is would be needed.

"Hey, just got word from Optimus. Jolt has agreed to be your guardian. You'll be on the same flight as my lovely ladies too." Will had left the group at the table to hear Optimus better over his own . Roxie had Annabelle on her lap with Tools and Maggie on either side of her. Mikeala sat across the table next to Sarah. "That means you don't have to say goodbye right away." Annabelle was pleased to hear this more than the person who the news was meant for.

"I won't say goodbye until the very last second Annabelle. And having Jolt as my guardian should make the trip interesting. Especially for you Tools." Roxie snickered at the face of absolute dread that Tools had made since hearing Jolt's name. Jolt had promised to get Tools back along with the twins, she could just imagine Tools being launched from the seat while going down the road. Or being locked up in the trunk the whole way to her house.

"If he's a good guardian then he'll think about your safety first and getting back at Tools second." Mikeala spoke this wisely in truth. Over the years she'd seen Bumblebee and Sam prank each other, but non of it ever occurred when they were away from the house, even in unpopulated areas. Wheelie even behaved significantly more when they walked to and from the shop. Thinking of Wheelie she realized she hadn't seen him that morning when she'd woken up. Putting that thought to the side she refocused on the present. Her words seemed to ease Tools a bit but not by much.

On the topic of guardians Roxie turned to Maggie," You leave base every once in a while right? Who go you get for a guardian?"

Smiling a little in embarrassment Maggie quietly replied," Sunstreaker or Sideswipe."

"What? Sunstreaker? Really? I mean, I can see Sideswipe working out, but Sunstreaker? How does he even let you sit in him?" Roxie was the only one surprised to hear this, the others already knew who was guardian to who.

"We have an agreement that I have to put a blanket over the seat first and my shoes need to be put in a plastic bag. Besides that he's not that bad of a travelling companion. Sideswipe is a bit more fun, he actually lets me choose the radio station." The girls all giggled at the image of Sideswipe, a rather masculine mech, flying down the highway blaring songs by Pink, Avril Lavigne, or Lady Gaga. The two present males shook their heads, Sideswipe probably allowed it to prove he's better than his brother or to impress one of the femmes.

"At least you don't have to listen to Skids and Mudflap. I got ripped off on the guardian deal." Heads turned to Leo, Sam and Glenn. Since their table was already crowded they pushed another table over to connect end to end.

Intrigued Roxie asked," Got some horror stories to share then?"

"Nightmares, with them my memories become nightmares. I'm always called Chia Pet, they fight over who has to drive me. If it's night they'll use their projectors to put Jason, Freddy and Darth Vader in the car with me. When I'm trying to pick up chicks they cause so many distractions. I would take Mr. Trigger Happy or Mr. Organicphobia any day over them. Now you get the only available awesome vehicle. Nobody likes me I swear!" Leo ended his dramatic complaints by slamming his head down on the table, nearly hitting his plate of macaroni and cheese. Sam pat Leo on the back sympathetically. Even though he couldn't sympathize since his guardian was like an awesome brother.

"Tell you what. When I get back I'll tell you all about Jolt's flaws as a guardian, will that make you feel better?" Roxie blinked her eyes cutely at Leo, which just made Tools glare a little at Leo who smiled back and nodded a little.

Will wanted to give both boys a warning glare, he was stopped from doing so by Sarah gently putting the heel of her shoe on top of his boot. It was her silent warning that he needed to let the teenagers do what they want or else she would give him a very sore foot, army boot or not. A beep came from Will's comm, he held up a finger to silence the group. He listened and reported," Alright, the flight's ready to take off. Let's get this show in the air ladies."

Roxie, Sarah, Annabelle and Tools have a generic farewell and followed after Will. The teenagers left behind in the mess hall had smiled when they waved, but something in their minds screamed for them to stop the two red heads. The thought was ignored, even by Sam, with the reasoning that their prolonged exposure to war had made them paranoid.

Roxie was sure that Annabelle and Sarah had arrived on a helicopter, so seeing a very large aircraft carrier had her slightly confused until she watched Jolt drive into it. _'__Right, bigger passenger needs a bigger seat.__'_ The image of Jolt reclining and asking for a bag of peanuts had her snickering all the way to the plane's little staircase. Since Will wasn't joining them he hugged and kissed Sarah and Annabelle before letting them on the plane. Roxie stepped up and gave Will a fond smile, she saw Sarah as a mother but Will was more like an Uncle. All the same she hugged him, with the close contact Will was able to be heard over the plane's engine," Be careful, and keep your escorts in line."

"They'll be changed in the best way possible once I'm through with them Major Lennox. I didn't hang around the femmes and learn nothing after all." This made Will chuckle and ruffle her hair. Roxie went into the plane and Will's sense of worry only increased.

Tools and his commanding officer shook hands, they didn't say good luck or anything of the sort. Those kind of words were given in congratulations for completing a mission that could have taken your life.

Will watched the carrier, his family and friends take off. He watched it until the plane had ascended and turned to head back to the main land, where all the dangers they'd been keeping away from Roxanne Rose Evans would be able to find her again.

/./././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././

Tools and Sarah could tell just by looking at Roxie that she was slightly hurting from the plane's technology, not being able to do anything to ease the pain troubled them. Annabelle, without knowing it, was doing her best to try and distract Roxie from her returning headache.

"Was it fun having sleepovers with Chromia, Arcee and Flareup?" Annabelle had made sure that she got the seat next to Roxie, she had a lot of questions for her older friend.

"It was a blast. We had pillow fights, played truth or dare and talked about boys." Roxie deliberately raised her voice enough for Tools and Jolt to catch that last bit. She told Will she was going to put them through hell, she never said when she would start. Sarah stifled a giggle as Tools oh so casually leaned in his seat to try and catch more of the conversation. Jolt turned up his audio receptors.

Annabelle could see that Roxie was having fun with this topic and decided to play along," What boys did you talk about?"

All for show Roxie leaned down and whispered," Pretend I'm telling you a really big secret, then look at Tools' face and snicker like you're evil." Roxie sat back up and looked out the window with a clever smirk.

Following instructions Annabelle openly looked over at Tools and snickered, before her and Sarah burst into laughter when Tools completely fell out of his seat. He'd taken off his seat belt and leaned as far as he could across the aisle to try and listen, he leaned too far, lost his balance and hit the floor face first, _**'**__**You**__**'**__**re an idiot.**__**'**_Came over the comm piece from Jolt.

The little trick on Tools kept Roxie in good spirits for the remainder of the three and a half hour long flight. Upon landing they dropped some, she had to say good bye to Sarah and Annabelle until who knows when, and she had to face millions of high frequencies in the city, Agent Stone and Agent Steep possibly lurking by her house and the Decepticons were the big red cherry of doom on top of it all. _This is going to be a loooooong day.__'_

_/__'__;./__'__;../__'__;./__'__;../__'__;./__'__;./__'__;./__'__;../__'__;/__'__;./__'__;./__'__;./__''__../__'__;./__'__;./__'__;./__'__;./__'__;./__'__;./__'__;./__'__;._

"Think Wheelie think! You're not so good at thinking, but this is too annoying not to!" Wheelie was out on the beach rolling back and forth talking to himself to try and figure out the mystery that was bothering him since early that morning.

_-Flashback-_

_ Mikeala was snuggled up against Sam, both humans didn__'__t even feel Wheelie jump down from the bed or hear him roll out of the room._

_ It was just barely getting to be dawn and only a few soldiers were up walking the halls heading to or from their patrol shifts. Any that saw him didn__'__t question, much to his hatred Wheelie had been dubbed the Wandering Catbot, at this time he didn__'__t mind it that much since it let him get to his destination faster._

_ Wheelie stopped abruptly a few short feet away from the Med bay, not too far from the human door was the medical apprentice Jolt in his alt mode. __'_Primus, please let him be a deep recharger.' _This prayer sent to their equivalent to God Wheelie did his best to quietly roll forward to the door, his sensors completely focused on the bot that would likely try and stop him. He got to the door and the little switch that had been installed for himself and Annabelle to use to get in if they ever needed to talk to Ratchet. With a soft __'__click__'__ the door came unlocked, moving fast he slipped in and pushed the door closed again. _'Oh for the love of!' _Wheelie ha gotten pass Jolt just to find he had to get around Ratchet__'__s outstretched leg and then he had to get close to Roxanne without waking up the human male that would glare at him for showing __"__affection__"__ to his Warrior Goddess._

_ There wasn__'__t much space between the mech__'__s foot and the wall, doing some calculations he found his best option would be in his truck form. Switched he advanced forward slowly to prevent the whine of his parts from being heard. Right when he was perfectly between the foot and wall Ratchet__'__s leg gave a twitch. Thankfully it moved his foot further back giving Wheelie more room and the chance to move just a bit faster._

_ Getting up on the bed was going to be very difficult without assistance, looking around the room his optics fell on a tool box that would give him just enough height to hoist himself up on the bed. Since it was filled with Tools he wouldn__'__t be able to move it without waking up Ratchet and Tools, _'Guess I gotta make a jump. Gimme a break Primus, just a lil' more luck.'_ He hopped up on the tool box, steadied himself and jumped as high as his body would let him. Primus was on his side, Wheelie got just close enough to grab hold of the blankets. Not trusting gravity Wheelie did quick work to pull himself up on to the bed next to Roxanne__'__s arm._

_ With no distance between them Wheelie could feel the familiar energy much stronger and concentrated in one area. Being a bot that often invaded a woman__'__s personal space he had no problem pulling the blanket over and reach into Roxanne__'__s pocket (she was still wearing her clothes from yesterday.) With a tug he pulled out two headphone looking things, they were the source of the familiar energy. He scanned them over four times this way and that way but nothing came up from his memory banks. Tools let out a small groan, a sign that Wheelie needed to get going. He did his best to tuck the headphones back in the pocket, pulled the blanket back over then lowered himself off the bed. He didn__'__t bother with complete stealth on his way out, no one woke up even with the bit of noise he made._

_-End Flashback-_

"That's it! I'm not going to keep trying, I'm gonna short myself out! I'm takin' a nap and worrying 'bout it later." The tiny bot did just that, he found a comfortable spot under a tree and fell into recharge without a second thought.

* * *

**J: OKAY GOT SOME ANNOUNCEMENTS!**

**1) Tatyana Witwicky has a new fanfic out called 'Operation: Babysitter' Full of adorable shits and giggles, give it a read people!**

**2) There is plenty more artwork for you all to check out, over the next few days I'll get around to putting the links on my profile page, but the quickest way to see it is to go to .com OR .com**

**3) Okay, so thanks to a dare between me and Ironaft30 I now have a completed fanfiction that is rated R for the intimate details. It is a Roxie and Tools one shot with very minor spoilers towards the main story. Sooo I am going to start a poll on my profile, let me know if I should post it on here or not.**

**4) LynxbyLynx has started a new fanfiction called Transfan Mania starring herself and me, I personally recommend it, give it a glance or a full read through people!  
**


	20. Shore Leave, Part Two

**GG23: "Eyes glued to screen"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Sam screaming like a little girl NEVER gets old xD Okay back to business of updating. I was surprised how everyone immediately thought badly of Wheelie, to be honest I like the little guy, leg humping not included, but over all he seems okay to me. Hope this next part clears his name :3**

**THANKS TO:**

**ChocoKoko: **Lol, they would probably then wonder if it wasn't Lady Gaga herself, I can see her driving a lambo ;D

**Ironhide and Lennox: **Thank youz! I love you so so so much for reviewing (D: Optimus just got stabbed through by Megatron "cry")

**Dontgotaclue88: **Um...Sorry? Ahha

**AutobotSyds643: **The awesome thing with being female is being able to make men think almost anything. Mwahaha! This might show that Jolt may be warming up to her, but he's still got his "grrr" factor going for him xD

**Tailsdoll123: **Joey actually will be reappearing, but it will be in one of the following one shots that I'll start working on after the main story is done. You're hunch was indeed correct as you will see in here.

**Soundwave 10307(?) : **"Headtilt" I don't mean to be rude, but I didn't entirely understand what your review said. Sorry :( But thank you for sending a review all the same.

**DISCLAIMER: HASBRO OWNS TRANSFORMERS. IRONAFT30 OWNS GREGORY TOOLS HARPER. I OWN ROXANNE GLITCH.**

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**Chapter Eighteen - Shore Leave Part Two**

"Be good for your mom and we'll get ice cream next time I see you." Roxie was crouched down on Annabelle's level just as she'd done the first day they met.

"Do you know when I'll see you again?" Annabelle had asked her mom and dad the same question earlier before Roxie had woken up. Her parents had said the same thing. It wasn't safe for Roxie to go home to the farm, so the next time she could see Roxie would be when she visited the base again.

With a sad smile Roxie answered," I won't lie Annabelle, I really don't know. But I'll be really annoying on base and ask for you to visit as soon as possible. Okay?" Annabelle nodded and grabbed Roxie in a hug. Even at her young age Annabelle knew that something bad was going to happen to Roxie but there was nothing she could to prevent it. When they got home she was going to ask mommy to call Ironhide and make sure Roxie was okay. The girls separated so Sarah could hug her as well.

"Please be very careful. Run if you can." Sarah's advice made Roxie feel as if she was entering the cave with the dragon.

"I always choose flight over fight, it's just that fight tends to follow after me." Sarah believed her, the girl had been running most of her life after all.

Her grip on Roxie's shoulder tightened," Well, if it comes down to it, try and outrun the fight no matter what. Promise me this, okay?"

"I promise Sarah." The hugged again, when they ended the embrace Roxie walked over to where Jolt sat waiting with Tools already in the back seat. During the flight Jolt had told the two who got to sit where. After much arguing Roxie had convinced Jolt to let her sit in the passenger seat.

Getting in and buckling up (Roxie noticed the seat belt fit perfectly to her chest) she sighed," Okay, I'm good. We can go now." Mech and man said nothing but both noticed how much Roxie had become disheartened.

On a small back road they drove in silence until it got too unbearable for Roxie," Guuuuys! I'm going to go insane if you don't say something. It's not healthy for a person to wallow in depression AND silence. Let's talk about something or put music on. Please?" Tools blinked at Roxie with a raised eyebrow, he didn't think quiet could bother someone that much.

"Here's a topic of discussion. Tell us what you told Annabelle on the plane." Jolt's suggestion had Tools eagerly leaning forward and Roxie looking out the window. Jolt obviously knew that she hadn't told Annabelle anything and was using it to embarrass her and upset Tools. Two birds with one stone.

Thinking fast she replied," Girl's secret. Chromia and Flareup would shoot me on the spot once they got word I spilled. New topic. Mind telling me about this Dibs Law Tools? I overheard Leo grumbling about it, my name, and your name yesterday before my hearing got the best of me." Turning around in her seat Roxie gave Tools a suspicious look.

Laughing nervously and swearing Leo's punishment inside Tools tried Roxie's approach," Boy's secret. Can't betray my brothers. How about you put some music on Jolt?" Tools held his breath, Jolt had it out for him and could refuse and push more on the subject.

Jolt surprised both human passengers when an upbeat techno song came on, they went with it thinking that Jolt just wanted to focus on driving and keeping all his sensors on the surroundings.

With the music playing in the background Tools and Roxie settled on playing 21 Questions to pass the time and keep Roxie from wallowing in her vanishing depression," Am I Cybertronian?"

"Yes." Tools' face drooped, he thought he'd come up with a good one that round.

"Am I the big bad Hatchet?" Roxie whooped in glee for winning the sixth round in a row. Tools just didn't choose the right things for her to guess. Before Ratchet he had chosen a fire truck.

During their game Roxie had been turned around in her seat and only focusing on Tools, when she sat back down and saw their surroundings she slumped down to the point where the seat belt could choke her," Why didn't you tell me we're in the city?"

"Because Ironhide told me you'd start freaking out and give yourself a heart attack, which is exactly what you're doing right now. Sit in the seat properly, I've tinted the windows so no one can see inside very well." Without seeing it a hand reached over and roughly pulled Roxie up so she was sitting properly. Following the hand up Roxie got her first look at Jolt's holoform. He chose to be African American with long light brown dread locks, a very busy goatee, a long sleeved blue shirt, and knee length green shorts. He also wore blue and black flip flops. "Is this your first time using your holoform Jolt?"

"What business is it to you?" Jolt glared back at Tools using the rear view mirror.

Hands up in surrender Tools mumbled," I'll take that as a kind of yes." Jolt glared for a second more then returned to looking like he was driving.

Despite Jolt's window tint Roxie was still on edge. Her eyes shifted from window to window trying to spot any suits, hearing for any Decepticons would be a pointless attempt since all she could really heard was Jolt's spark. Jolt's sensors were stretched to the max with the exception for the one he had focused on Roxie's heart. Feeling it's increase in beat Jolt rolled his holoform's eyes then flicked her on the temple," Focus on me or focus on the idiot sitting in the back, or I will sedate you."

"Fine, I'll focus on all the little secrets your spark is leaking out." The glove compartment popped opened and a needle came out with the silent threat. "Okay, okay. I'm moving to the back seat, man you were clearly not created with a proper sense of humour." Roxie undid the seat belt then squeezed through the front seats to the back. Whether it was deliberate or not neither human could tell, but just before she could sit down Jolt made the next turn sharp and sent Roxie flying onto Tools' lap.

Blushing and fuming at the same time Roxie squeaked," Sorry! Someone's a lousy driver. Ow! I thought you're suppose to protect me not harm me!" At the insult to his driving Jolt made an unnecessary turn right when Roxie moved, she then fell into the empty seat and hit her head on the window.

"I wasn't told I couldn't have fun while doing my job. Your house is around the next corner, you'll need to point out any familiar vehicles or people." Jolt's holoform spoke and his hand pointed to the floor beneath Tools' feet. Tools got the message and reached down, the floor slid open where an assault rifle modified to deal with Decepticons laid ready for use.

They turned the corner and all of them went tense. Leaning forward to see out the front window Roxie scanned the area. There was no black cars, no men in suits or sunglasses on her porch or across the street. "There's no one outside and I doubt they have cameras planted outside. Can you tell if there's anyone inside?"

"My heat sensors aren't picking anything up. Go in and get your stuff, but be cautious. I don't want to fail my job as a guardian just because you two were careless." Roxie and Tools made a face at Jolt's holoform. He was a trained soldier meant to scout out potentially dangerous areas for regular soldiers, and she'd been able to avoid the Feds for most of her life. They could handle a slip in. Jolt glared back and soundlessly opened their doors.

Tools kept a wary eye as they ran across the street and around to the back door. Roxie didn't even twitch to find the door was unlocked. Wary of any motion detectors she scanned the door frame for anything out of place. She saw and heard nothing and stepped inside.

Tools wasn't sure what he'd find in Roxie's house, from what he understood of her life style the past few years she didn't spend a lot of time at her house. The back door lead straight into the living room with a well used couch, plan brown carpet, a small lamp on a table, and an old box television. "Hmph, idiots."

Roxie had gone over to the lamp and pulled out a small black dot from the lampshade. She brought it over to the laminated kitchen floor and crushed it with the heel of her shoe. During this Tools had found the collection of photos on the wall. A goofy little smirk was on his face as he focused on the picture of her at the age of 13 with her long brown hair pulled back into two pig tails and she was wearing all bright pink clothing. She flicked Tools on the ear to bring him back to attention," The goons in suits will probably be here in 20 minutes, we need to get moving. Watch the front windows, and don't even think of stealing that picture." The last bit was added on when she noticed he was beginning to lean towards the wall. He held up both hands and went to the front as instructed.

Roxie wasted no time and dashed up the stairs two at a time. She went straight to her room and looked around. She wasn't sure whether to be creeped out or relieved that the goons had put her duffel bag and all its untouched contents on the bed. "You probably have a tracker in you, but I'll risk it. Just need my batteries."

Roxie dove under her bed and crawled over to the wall. She went to a specific spot where a part of the floor had a little music note. With practiced ease she pried up the plank to reveal a little metal box with a thumb scanner in the middle of the lid. A scan, a'BEEP' and she had her little batteries that looked much like the ones found in watches and calculators. "ROXIE! WE'VE GOT COMPANY!" Roxie cursed, they were ten minutes early.

Tools stood at the back door with it open, the men he'd seen come out of the cars all carried guns which he guessed were loaded with tranquilizer darts. They wanted Roxie, and they were not giving her any chances this round. Roxie came down three steps at a time ad dashed out the door. Tools let Roxie take the lead and followed her to the wooden fence that separated her backyard from the neighbour's. They got through a hole created by the removal of two planks and ran around to the farthest side of the neighbour's house. Backs pressed against the wall they watched the men in suits and police officers surround Roxie's house," Jolt can you get to our position? They might not have noticed you."

_**'Got it, just don't do anything to give yourself away. These humans may be stupid, but they have plenty of gear to spot you two in an instant.' **_Jolt had indeed gone unnoticed by the swarms of people that surrounded Roxanne's house. The idiots even left it easy for him to get to the neighbour's. He activated his holoform to make it appear that he had been ducked down, upon seeing him one of the police officers went over and tapped his window. Jolt rolled it down and asked," What's going on officer?"

"You're going to have to leave, sir. This is a delicate situation that you could jeopardize." The officer recited the procedure words for these scenarios but couldn't believe it himself. It was ridiculous to use so much force for one female punk.

Jolt gave a nod," Of course officer. I'm just going to turn around in that drive way first." The officer saw no harm in this and waved him on. Jolt went through the motion of starting the engine and copied the appearance of any other civilian in that situation. He constantly looked towards the officers and agents trying to see some action while doing his best to get going.

The illusion worked and got the present armed men and women to ignore him as he pulled up into the drive way. The door closest to his awaiting passengers opened oh so quietly, the passengers themselves got down on their hands and kneed and crawled towards him as fast as they could with a gun and duffel bag to handle. They threw themselves into the back seats, Jolt's tires squealed as he flew out of the drive way in reverse. "What did you do that for? They wouldn't have noticed if you'd just driven out normally!" Tools and Roxie watched from over the back seat as the law enforces scrambled to get in their vehicles and follow after them.

"I've been tuned into their radios this whole time. They knew you weren't in the house just as you got in. Buckle up, it's going to get bumpy." They did so quickly as Jolt made a sharp turn down a narrow road just big enough for him to fit in. A manuever Roxie used plenty of times, apparently too many times. Three officers on motorbikes turned down the road as well.

"In a situation like this those additions you made to my bike would be quite useful. If we get away from them I'll be sure to thank you properly." Roxie was tense and felt making light hearted comments might ease herself up, it didn't work.

Tools was in soldier mode, he'd barely acknowledged the comment and kept his eyes glued to the men following them. They turned onto a major street that would lead them out of the city, but first they had to get through the afternoon traffic. The pursuing bike officers were joined by the main group of vehicles. Though their windows were tinted Roxie could see Agent Stone and Agent Steep in the car closest to the front. _'I can handle this, as long as nothing worse happens, I can handle this.' _Roxie's knuckles were white from her grip on the seat. Had she been on the run by herself she would be panicking too much to succeed in her get away, with Jolt driving and Tools as her support she was keeping her thoughts focused on possible solutions. Even with her two partners though she knew she would freak out if a Decepticon appeared.

"Slag!" The hairs stood up on the back of Roxie's neck, very slowly she and Tools turned around to face the front. Coming straight for them was the black helicopter that had attacked her, Will and Ironhide.

Wheelie woke up cursing in Cybertronian. In his sleep his processor had continued to analyze the energy that was coming off of Roxanne's head phone thingies. He'd just figured it out and the answer worried him. Already in his alt mode Wheelie took off for the main hangar, the sand and vegetation slowed his progress and only made him more anxious to get to someone.

He got to the tarmac and saw the human he agreed should be called Chia Pet Head heading for the beach with the guy that could eat eight donuts in under three minutes. He transformed in motion," Chia Pet! Donut Boy! I need your help!"

"My name is Leo, use it or I won't associate with you….What's your problem Wheelie?" Leo started off pissed from the nickname but asked out of genuine concern from the fear in Wheelie's optics.

"You gotta take me to the nearest bot, that femme is in trouble. Like she is DEAD trouble." Leo and Glen exchanged a wide eyed look, grabbed Wheelie and took off to the bot they could see by the obstacle course.

The bot turned out to be Sideswipe," Sideswipe! Sideswipe!"

The silver bot looked down at the panting males, Wheelie had been put on the ground and rolled closer towards him. Wheelie spoke in Cybertronian so he could relay the information faster," You need to get those two humans back here!"

"What do you know pipsqueak? Have you been holding out on us?" Sideswipe glared down at the little worker drone, if the ex-Decepticon knew something that could have prevented Tools from being put into danger he was going to crush him in a nanosecond.

"I only figured it out now, I'm with you guys." Wheelie back stepped towards Leo and Glen for some kind of protection.

"What did you just figure out? Tell me now and I might not squish you."

"Those things that Roxie chick has are coated in Megatron's energy. Those things came from Megatron! Now will you get your aft moving and tell those humans to get back?" For the second time Wheelie was abruptly grabbed and carried off into the main hangar.

As Sideswipe went to find Optimus he tried to comm. Jolt, receiving no answer he cursed, they were already too late. He switched his comm to Optimus, _**' We need to find Jolt now. Wheelie just answered the question of Why.'**_

_**'Ratchet has just informed me that Jolt's signal has left the radar, as well as Tools' tracking signal. What information does Wheelie have?' **_Optimus' voice was tight, he was losing control of the situation and with three lives at risk information he could get was welcome.

Sideswipe got into the hangar and found the triplets, Ironhide, Ratchet and his brother with Optimus Prime. Holding Wheelie out in his hand he spoke in English for Will, Epps and Simmons to hear," Tell them what you just told me."

"Back on Cybertron I got close enough to Megatron to memorize his energy radiation so I could book it when he got close, ya know? Those things that that Roxanne femme has were covered in the same energy. Those things belong to Megatron." Wheelie watched Optimus and Ratchet's expressions, realization dawned from his words.

Ratchet looked down at Simmons, "Would it have been possible for Roxanne's father to remove pieces from Megatron without Sector Seven noticing his actions?"

"…That idiot! He told me he just wanted to study the parts to attempt duplicating them. I watched him put the parts back!" Simmons had gone pale then red in anger. Everyone was sure that had Roxanne's father been alive Simmons would have throttled him.

"Would you please tell me what everyone else seems to know?" Will had lost his patience as it seemed that Simmons and the Cybertronians all knew what was going on.

Ratchet was the one to answer," It appears that Mr. Evans, Roxanne's father, did not make Roxanne's hearing mufflers. He removed Megatron's audio dampeners and added parts to them to disguise their origins and make them compatible with Roxanne's ears. It all makes sense as to why Megatron would want her."

"Without his audio dampeners Megatron cannot block out any noise pollution." Optimus finished for Ratchet and brought the final meaning to everyone.

Megatron was at a disadvantage without his audio dampeners, just as Roxanne couldn't handle life without her hearing mufflers. But this brought another question to mind," Okay, so Megatron wants his audio dampeners back, but how did he know that Roxie has them? Megatron was in frozen stasis at the time."

"This is true, but even in a cryogenic state Megatron must still have been aware through audio alone. Richard Evans was the one to study Megatron's head, giving Megatron plenty of opportunities to understand which human had come in contact with him." Simmons and Will felt their hearts sink, it explained why Megatron wanted Roxie perfectly. What he would do after getting his hands on her was another fear they had to worry about.

"What was their last known location?" Will had to get moving and do something, he couldn't stand around now that he knew what was going on.

"We've already got the flight crew and all Autobots in preparation. Send out a call for your men, once the planes are ready we are leaving." Chromia answered, her voice tight with fear and anger. Her, Arcee and Flareup were resonating the two emotions between their sparks to power their systems. They would not rest until their friend was safe and sound back on base in their quarters.

Will, Simmons and Epps took off running to put out the call and get their gear ready. Sam, Mikeala, Maggie, Glenn and Leo raced past them to the bots," Is there anything we can do to help?"

"I'm afraid not Sam. If you were to come it would only jeopardize your life once again. Please remain here, we will do everything we can to bring back Roxanne, Gregory and Jolt." Optimus' spark went out to the young humans. It was clear they were worried about their friends and being unable to help would not ease their fears.

Sam knew Optimus was right, Megatron would love an opportunity to kill him again, and the Matrix would most likely not work a second time. "If there is anything we can do to help, let us know immediately." Optimus nodded, this he could accept.

"Sir, the plane is ready for departure." A soldier often played messenger between the Autobots and certain stations of the base reported.

"Autobots, roll out!" Those that had been present for the explanation transformed into their alt modes and drove off for the air carriers, more than one would be necessary for all of them to go.

Sam wrapped an arm around Mikeala's shoulders to give her some reassurance," Sam, they're going to make it right?"

"I don't know Mikeala, it really falls on whether Jolt and Tools can hold off the Decepticons long enough." Sam and the others had all felt it earlier when Roxie had said her goodbyes. They'd had a sinking feeling in their stomachs that when Roxie left, they might not see her as she once was when she came back.

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**GG23: :o Can see Jolt with his electricity charged up! SQUEEE! Teehee, okay business business!**

**1) There a few lovely Roxie and Tools fan art links posted on my profile page for you all to check out :D**

**2) I have a poll going on my profile for your opinion. Should I post the one shot I've written with an intimate (REALLY INTIMATE) moment between Roxie and Tools?**

**A LIST OF FICS TO CHECK OUT!**

**- Transfan Mania by LynxbyLynx**

**- Operation: Babysitter by Tatyana Witwicky**

**-Bridge to Nowhere by me**

**3) YOU SHOULD ALL WATCH TF2 AGAIN LOOOOOOL LOVE! (I've watched it TOO many times xD)**

**4) The link to see holoform Jolt is also on my profile page!  
**


	21. Shore Leave, Part Three

**GG23: Dun, Dun, DUUNNN! The final part of the climax! I would have posted it this morning when I'd finished it, but nooooooo, the login had to be all fragged up! "Fume,fume." What's done is done I guess. It's working now and you all can finish reading the epic center chapter!**

**THANKS TO:**

**Hedgi: Thank you for reviewing! And I wrote all this hoping for just your kind of reaction xD**

**ChocoKoko: Yea, I know he/she's an aft but I'm just ignoring the words and keeping it for numbers sake :P I'm glad to hear your affection for Wheelie, cause personally I haven't found too much wrong with the lil guy :3**

**Dontgotaclue88: Lol, hope this didn't disappoint :3**

**LynxbyLynx: There is plenty of action, though like the other chapters, action that could have been written much better. TT_TT**

**Jazzi Flynn: Lol, how far behind were you? And you haven't read interesting in this just yet ;D**

**AutobotSyds643: It is indeed falling into place, and watching Transformers when you're bored is the best possible thing to do xD**

**Latina Shewolf: Ahha, I thought it was kinda obvious what was going on. Yes, Roxie's dad was bad and did not tell a lot of people a lot of things. And yes, Jolt did make Roxie fall on Tools on purpose for sake of embarrassing them both xD **

**DISCLAIMER: HASBRO OWNS TRANSFORMERS. IRONAFT30 OWNS TOOLS. ROXANNE BELONGS TO ME.  
**

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**Chapter Eighteen - Shore Leave Part Three**

"Please tell me you can get a hold of the others." Roxie's voice was a tiny squeak, her eyes huge and her hands trembling. Cyclonus had come up from nowhere and was flying straight for them head on.

"The slagger must have a signal jammer, I'm only getting static. He was probably sitting just outside the sensor range listening in on their radios like I was." Jolt's voice sounded very much like Ironhide's, only with a tint of a more fierce rage.

Agent Stone and Agent Steep feverishly tried their state of the art communication ear pieces," This is not suppose to be known by the media. Can you see any logos on that chopter?" Agent Stone couldn't bother paying attention to the helicopter, his sights were only on the blue car with his prize. For the past four years he'd been chasing after Roxanne Rose Evans for the generous sum of money the medical research department was offering for her live capture. Besides the money the satisfaction of paying her back for all the trouble and expenses he'd gone through would be sweet. The tranquilizers they were carrying would knock her out for four hours, plenty of time to inflict some damage. A broken finger or two, a nice collection of cigarette burns. To him an eye for an eye didn't make sense, his one eye for her two sounded much better.

"That's not a news helicopter Stone." Fear, why was there fear in Agent Steep's voice? Agent Stone tore his eyes away from the blue car to look up at the black helicopter, it had flown past the blue car and was now heading towards them. The plating on the underside of the helicopter began to shift, allowing two rows of very small missiles to drop down.

Tightening his grip on the steering wheel Agent Stone turned cold dark green eyes to the rear window of the blue Chevy. Roxanne looked back at him with fear and what he thought was apology, feeling nothing he growled," You always did win by cheating. Well I hope you're happy now bitch." The missile sank into the hood of the car, ending the life of the man that had been making Roxanne's life a misery for far too long.

Roxanne watched in mute horror as the beginning of her morning routine was extinguished in a grand series of explosions. "He…He killed them. He killed Agent Stone and Agent Steep. They're gone, just like that."

"Roxie don't go into shock, we need you to stay focused if we're going to keep you safe." Tools gently turned Roxie's face and sight away from the flaming husks that were once vehicles. He made sure she looked only at him, they couldn't afford for her to start freaking out.

The scene kept repeating through her mind. Cyclonus flying over them, Agent Stone looking straight at her without his sunglasses to hide the look of absolute hatred she felt go straight to her heart. The missile being launched and the first of six explosions. Her brain couldn't fully comprehend everything, it didn't want to. It was scared, she was scared.

Jolt turned off the main road down a small side street that would lead them out of the city to prevent more casualties. Looking at his passengers he found that Tools was calmly talking to Roxanne, she wasn't blinking and her expression was confused. _'She's lost important people in her life, but she's never seen anyone die.' _It dawned on Jolt that Roxanne was now truly a victim of war, and she wasn't ready for it.

"Tools, I'm confused. I don't know if I should be relieved, or upset. They're gone and I don't know how I should feel." Everything caught up then, tears sprung up and she crumpled against Tools.

This wasn't the time for an emotional break down, Cyclonus had taken up the chase in the police and Agent's place and was getting closer. Letting out a sigh to steel himself Tools pushed Roxie back and slapped her cheek. Still shedding tears Roxie glared at him. He glared back doing his best to show that it was necessary," We need you to stay calm Roxanne, your hearing could help us. You can kick my ass for slapping you after we get out of this mess."

Sniffing to clear her nose and rubbing away the tears Roxie growled," Damn right I'm going to beat the crap out of you….But thank you." She turned her glare away from Tools and directed it at Cyclonus. She had no intention to avenge the deaths of Agent Stone and Agent Steep, she wanted to be rid of this problem and get on with her life.

"Any chance of us shooting him out of the sky? That modified squirt gun was designed to handle them right?" Roxie pointed to Cyclonus then at the gun, Ratchet had boasted about Tools' field skills more than once, and from what she could tell being spoken of by Ratchet meant it wasn't empty.

"We are not taking any such risk. My job is to protect both of you, which means we won't be stopping to try and fight him. Cyclonus has the worst aim of all the Decepticons, as long as I can avoid his projectiles there is nothing he can do." Jolt approved of the attitude change, though the method used to get it made Jolt itch to eject Tools from his seat.

"Um…I hope you're really good at dodging Jolt. Cyclonus has a friend." Roxie and Tools felt their hearts freeze as an F-22 Raptor jet flew up alongside Cyclonus and stayed even with him.

"Fraggit! Whatever they want you for must be crucial if Starscream is getting involved." The detest in Jolt's voice was also heard through his spark. Jolt's spark told Roxie all she needed to know about the Decepticon Megatron kept as his second in command. The bit of information about him being a scientist unsettled her stomach and pitched her fear. If a human scientist was bad, then a Decepticon scientist was ten times worse.

The remaining missiles that Cyclonus had lowered launched, Jolt swerved to the left right off the road and into a cornfield. The corn stalks blocked Jolt's sight of where they were driving. Cyclonus retracted the empty holding for his missiles and shifted out his machine guns and went nuts. Even inside Jolt Tools and Roxie could hear Cyclonus' deranged laughter. Cyclonus' aim was indeed terrible, the shots barely got close but Jolt still veered away from them to be safe.

Starscream didn't seem to approve and deliberately ran into his side so his wing pushed him. Guns of his own extended and began a new well aimed attack. Just as Cyclonus had Starscream's aim went for only one side to which Jolt veered away. "Jolt, they're herding you. You need to go in the opposite direction." Tools noticed the pattern, the two fliers were trying to lead Jolt blindly to a trap.

"Alright, hold on." Slamming on the brakes Jolt drifted wide to try and duck under Starscream's rain of bullets. Cyclonus transformed and landed right in Jolt's path," WRONG TURN AUTOBOOB!" Jolt managed to pull a quick 180 mid drift, going back in the direction they were trying to avoid.

"Jolt if Tools helped you would you be able to fight them both?" Roxie's question got Tools to look at her with a cold confusion, he could see where she was going with the train of thought and he didn't like it.

Luckily neither did Jolt," Like Pit I'm going to leave you unprotected femme! I'll handle whatever pops up."

"What if it's Megatron? You think you can handle him if he comes down on us from the sky? If Jazz couldn't handle Megatron what makes you think you can?"

"Do not speak of Jazz like that femme!" They were finally out of the corn field and in an uncultivated area with no protection. Yet Starscream and Cyclonus continued to herd them directly towards a specific location.

"I'm not being disrespectful, I'm trying to give you advice. Just like he did back on Tyger Pax. You're doubting your abilities to hold your own, that's why you won't try. You're running away like a scaredy bot!"

Jolt had heard enough," I am not a scaredy bot! I am following that advice that Jazz gave me for once! He told me to run until a tactical advantage presented itself. I didn't listen before and it cost us an ally. I won't make the same mistake and let lives be taken. So don't go accusing me of being a coward."

"You idiot! Tools is your tactical advantage! That's what I'm trying to get through your thick metal processor. Work together and you'll be able to do some damage." Everything went silent, she'd just gotten through to him and Tools. The Decepticons would know and expect Jolt to continue running and avoid getting her close to them. A sudden reverse and assault would give them an advantage that might win them the fight.

"I say we do it Jolt, but you better stick close to me the whole time Roxie. You're my responsibility just as much as Jolt's." Tools broke the silence to aid the progress. Starscream and Cyclonus were beginning to fire less, a sign that they were getting closer to whatever the Decepticons had in store for them.

Jolt didn't believe it was the best idea and there were plenty of flaws that could screw them over. He focused on Tools and Roxie, both humans were staring at his steering wheel with eyes deadly intent on going through with it. "Fine, we'll do it. If either of you get hurt I will remind you that this was your idea." Roxie and Tools smiled confidently at Jolt's words then took hold of the holy shit straps. Jolt repeated his actions and pulled a 180, he drove past Starscream and Cyclonus and threw open his doors. The seat belts released and Roxie and Tools jumped and rolled. Jolt transformed and placed himself between the Decepticons, his whips lowered and charged up with electricity he growled," Here birdies, birdies."

Cyclonus took the lead and charged at Jolt guns blazing, Jolt stood his ground waiting. The second Cyclonus got into range Jolt lashed out with his left whip and snagged it around Cyclonus' tail," Oh slag! Let me go!"

"As you - WISH!" Jolt sent a massive pulse of electricity through the whip that caused Cyclonus' blades to stop working, Jolt released his whip as Cyclonus crashed down into the ground.

Roxie had watched in awe, she knew Jolt trained to be a medic as well as kept himself in fighting condition but to see him in actions was incredible. A sharp tug on her upper arm tore her eyes away and back to her task, staying close to Tools and avoiding the giant robot death match. Staying ducked down they moved to put some distance between them and the just transformed Starscream. He'd put his back to them not thinking they'd try anything out in the open without protection. Getting close to whisper and not be heard Roxie asked," What do we do? Distract Starscream or Cyclonus?"

"Wait, give Jolt the chance. If it looks like he's getting overwhelmed I'll step in." Tools kept his sight locked onto the Decepticons, the second they turned on them he would get Roxie running.

Jolt turned his attention to the approaching Starscream," What do you want with the girl Screamer?"

"Her purpose is of no concern to you Autobot. If you hand her over now we will leave without completely dismantling you." Starscream and Jolt were facing each other down, the mech that made the first move would likely take the most damage.

Jolt smirked," Oh I see, you weren't even told why Megatron wants her. You're just like Captain Crazy, just doing what you're told and waiting to learn why. How does that feel Screamer?" Starscream cracked his knuckles and lunged for Jolt. Jolt met Starscream head on and brought his whips in ahead of him. Starscream dodged the first and took a minor hit from the second, at close range Starscream took out his gun and shot for Jolt's chest. Jolt side stepped the shot but caught it on his left arm where the whip extended from. Growling from the pain he retracted the whip, it's electrical conduit damaged and unstable to use.

"I think now would be a good time to step in." That shot had looked painful and Starscream was still going at Jolt with his fists, Cyclonus was getting up and getting his own guns out.

"Alright, but the second I start firing we need to get running." Tools raised his gun and aimed for Cyclonus, the 'Con was still twitching from the electric shock that had jammed up his blades. Target locked Tools held down the trigger, his shots whizzed through the air and hit around Cyclonus' neck joints.

"Ow! You little punk! You nicked one of my energon lines!" Just as expected Cyclonus turned his full attention to Roxie and Tools. Unable to fly still he ran at them on his peds which was awkward because of his alt mode components.

"What do we do now that he's running after us?" Roxie was right next to Tools running for anything that looked like a good place to duck in cover. There was of course no where with their surroundings being almost entirely devoid of life.

"There! Go for those boulders." Tools spun around and switched the mode of his gun, taking quick aim he shot for Cyclonus' face. Two different flares exploded in Cyclonus' optics in white and yellow.

Cyclonus back stepped covering his eyes," AH! You are dead squishy boy! We don't need you, just the female!" Cyclonus' words made Roxie's blood go cold.

Going towards the boulders Roxie began to feel her headache come back, slowing down some she called to Tools over the noise of Jolt and Starscream's fighting," Tools! I don't think those boulders are a good idea."

"We don't have a choice Roxie, keep going he's coming at us again." Tools grabbed Roxie's hand and pulled her along.

Her headache was getting worse and a distinct noise was becoming apparent. Cyclonus had recovered and was firing at them, the earth around them exploded from the shots hitting the ground. Tools began to run faster for the boulders, she tried to fight against him and yell about the danger, the constant explosions drowned her voice. They never reached the boulders.

Jolt was dead locked with Starscream hands interlocked and pushing against each other. Sudden cackling from Cyclonus and screaming caused Jolt to break the optic lock they'd also had. In his fever to destroy Starscream Jolt had lost sight of Roxie and Tools. Fear clenched his spark when he found them clenched in Demolisher's hands. Where there had supposedly been boulders was actually a hole that Demolisher had been hiding in with the cover of holographic ground and boulders. "NO!" Jolt risked the back lash and charged both electrical conduits to his hands. The shock was harsh enough to force Starscream to let go and step back.

Jolt took off running for the two Decepticons. Seeing him coming Cyclonus stepped in front of Demolisher," Let me go!" In complete panic Roxie beat down futilely on the metal that had a painful grasp around her body. Tools had lost his gun and was left to do the same.

Starscream's plan had played out perfectly, grinning maliciously he switched his hand for his stun cannon," Foolish Autobot, so predictable with a human involved."

Roxie saw the cannon charging," JOLT! BEHIND YOU!"

He couldn't hear her, his processor and systems were all intent on destroying Cyclonus to then reach Demolisher. Protective programming he never knew he had was in effect, all he could keep thinking was, _'Protect and aid.' _The stun bolt hit him square in the back immediately locking all functions. "JOLT! JOLT!" Roxie's heart nearly stopped beating entirely, her gaze set and unblinking on Jolt's unmoving form.

Starscream casually walked over to the motionless bot and rolled him over with his foot. Jolt's spark still pulsed undamaged and his optics were still lit but dimly.

'_I can still hear him, I can still hear his spark.' _Through the ugly screeches coming from the Decepticons' sparks Roxie could still hear the gently panpipe like tune that was the music of Jolt's spark.

"Incredible Starscream, your plan actually worked." Cyclonus cackled in delight, their lives would e spared and they even had an Autobot prisoner for Lord Megatron to have fun with. "Oh! Oh! Can I kill the squishy male? I already told him I would. OW!"

Infuriated by Cyclonus' jest about his plan working Starscream kicked Cyclonus in the back and into the ground. "No, he will be of use as well you pile of trash. Demolisher, contain the humans. Cyclonus you will assist me in carrying our prisoner."

Demolisher ignored Tools and Roxie's continuous struggles and transformed into his tank form, putting them both in his alt mode's interior. With enough room to move Tools went to Roxie, putting an around her he asked quietly," Are you alright?"

She pushed him off and gave him a cold glare," Why didn't you listen to me? This wouldn't have happened if we didn't go towards the boulders. You said my hearing would be able to help, well it would have if your hearing did too!"

"Yes I messed up, I should have listened to you. But you have to understand, it has been drilled into me that when you're under fire you get to cover no matter what. I was running off my training, not my better judgement. It's the same when you enter the city and instinctively begin to search for suits and escape routes." The more he talked the more Roxie began to crumple. She was scared and had resorted to blame first and foremost. Tools had spoken softly bringing her out of that state of mind. In the end she pulled herself into a ball with her face in her hands to cry. Tools pulled her to him once more letting her get it out of her system. The floor beneath them vibrated from movement, they were on their way to a whole new Hell, one which they might not escape from.

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**GG23: Just the usual final notes!**

**1) The poll for deciding on the risky one shot between Tools and Roxie is still up for your voting!**

**2) A new chapter has been added to the collaberation story done by Ironaft30 and myself called 'Bridge to Nowhere.'**

**3) Give LynxbyLynx' fanfic 'Transfan Mania' a looksie, not because I'm in it, but because she is an awesome writer and her plot is getting freaky awesome!  
**


	22. Too Late

**GG23: Must be quite a shock seeing such a short chapter here xD Don't worry I'm not a fan of short chapters, this is just something that was needed.**

**THANKS TO:**

**Londongirl007: **You are reviewer number 200! I tried to message you but you don't have that option on your page :s So send a message letting me know what you want for a prize, or even if you want one :3

**Dontgotaclue88: **Autoboob is actually Cyclonus' original saying from Armada :3

**LynxbyLynx: **Just remembered that you've read the smut fic xD Every other chapter a mention is welcome, though I think you're right about the readers ahha.

**Latina Shewolf: **And the problems will just keep coming, hope you have a seat belt installed or you'll fall right off your seat in the next few chapters.

**ChocoKoko: **It's a Cyclonus thing lol.

**Supergirlprime: **Not the batteries, the hearing mufflers themselves are Megatron's hearing dampeners. Sorry if it was confusing.

**Precious92 or Freezingtime92: **At least you found it :3 Thanks for hopping on the reader train for this fic! How come your username is two? Just asking out of curiosity :3

**Tailsdoll123: **Heh, sorry for the long chapter gap essays were getting in the way. /Can't expressly hint towards anything but don't keep your hopes too high.

**KingofJesters: **Huzzah for stumbling! I'm glad you're enjoying it, I'm doing my best to keep Roxie as her own self and to keep other characters in place as well. I hope you keep reading and enjoying.

**DISCLAIMER: HASBRO OWNS TRANSFORMERS. IRONAFT30 OWNS TOOLS. ROXANNE BELONGS TO ME.**

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**Chapter Nineteen - Too Late**

The trail left by the Decepticons in their pursuit of Jolt was easy to follow. Their first bread crumb came in the form of destroyed cars and police cruisers.

This then lead them out of the city to a portion of road partially ruined from Cyclonus' manic shooting.

Tire treads led them through the destroyed trail of corn and out onto the final battle field. Seeing the craters and pieces of Cybertronian fragments scattered about the ground gave Will, Epps and Simmons very little hope.

That hope all but vanished when two things were discovered. First was Tools' gun, bent and useless dropped near a very large hole with massive foot prints in the base. This was found by Sunstreaker, both front liners grew grim even after being told that pieces of Cyclonus' armour with his bullets found in it were found among the metal.

The second item was found by Chromia, Ironhide had noticed when the femme had stopped moving and was fixated to the spot staring down at the ground. Chromia had found Roxie's duffel bag tattered and nearly in pieces. Clutching it in her hands Chromia grew furious, her optics had turned a deep shade of purple. Ratchet explained later that if he had not put her into stasis she would have gone too deep into her battle programming to stop her from harming humans.

In the end Optimus had to inform Sam and the others that their rescue attempt was too late. But they would not give up the search.


	23. It Only Gets Worse

**GG23: You know I was rather surprised with how depressed you all got with that last short chapter...okay, mostly depressed and one frustrated ahha "Glances over at LynxbyLynx." So to liven you all up again here is a nice decent chapter.**

**THANKS TO:**

**Dontgotaclue88: **Looks like you found it! xD Couldn't resist.

**Supergirlprime: **"Pats on back" Don't worry things will turn out alright...after a lot of bad things happen first...ahha.

**LynxbyLynx:** I know! You would never think it possible with me!

**Hedgi: **I know what you're talking about, and its not the computer its the site itself, Soundwave must be tweaking with it or something "suspicious."

**ChocoKoko: **First she needs to take a deep calming breathe, then change out all her cannons with bigger cannons xD

**Latina Shewolf: **Too true! They will hold out, things have only just started, they know they still have time :3

**Psychoninja7: **D: This makes me sad and happy to hear. It's great to know you've got your own awesome thing going :3 If I was interested in Hetalia I would read your fanfic for sure :3

**Londongirl007: **I know, but like I said, it felt necessary :3 Still need to hear back from you on your 200th reviewer prize if you're interested.

**Tailsdoll123: **xD Lol, didn't know Roxie was that awesome. But she is only human, remember that for the next few chapters, otherwise you're probably not going to like me ahha.

**KingofJesters: **I know, I always twitch whenever one of my fav authors give me a really short chapter too.

**Freezingtime92: **Okay, I get where you're coming from. I put in my profile page a little note to let my readers know that my username always has the number 23 in it. Hope you don't mind but I'll use your newer name when thanking you, okay?

**Disclaimer: HASBRO OWNS TRANSFORMERS. IRONAFT30 OWNS TOOLS. I OWN ROXANNE!**

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**Chapter Twenty - It's Only Getting Worse**

There were no lights or windows inside Demolisher for Tools and Roxie to figure out where they were going or what time it was. They stayed huddled together keeping each other from falling asleep, which grew to be increasingly difficult as time went on and all they could hear and feel was the vibrations from Demolisher moving.

Her head nodding Roxie did her best to keep her eyes open, though the vibrations were the dominate noise Roxie could still hear the sour notes of Demolisher's spark and all the little things it had to tell her. One of his little secrets came out, her snickering drew Tools' from his own developing ease he was worried she was losing it," What? What's funny?"

"When no one is looking Demolisher likes to imagine he's Megatron's right hand mech and go on about how Megatron is praising him." Tools pictured the tankcon standing in front of a mirror and saying something like, "Oh please Lord Megatron, you're too generous with your praise."

Joining in on the snickering he asked," Anything else?"

Roxie held up a finger and listened more intently, a wider smirk spread across her face," He gets turned on whenever he sees Chromia." If Chromia ever heard this she'd tear his spark out, sign it then crush it.

Demolisher of course heard all this and could not take it anymore. The hatch into his interior opened and he rolled over to cause the humans to fall out onto the sand. Changing to bi-pedal mode he snatched them up non to gently," Who told you all this?"

"N-no one! I was just making it up!" Since the big idiot didn't seem to know about her hearing Roxie figured it would be better if it was kept to herself. "Why? Was it all true?"

"Of course it wasn't! Just be quiet from now on." Demolisher violently shook Roxie almost giving her whip lash.

"What are you doing you idiot? We are nearly there, put them back in your hold." Starscream and Cyclonus were up in the air carrying Jolt between them by his arms. Tools could tell even from a distance that his left arm had bee dislocated.

Demolisher growled at Roxie and Tools and did as instructed. Back in the small black room Roxie smiled largely. Without realizing it the stupid Decepticon had given her and Tools a quick chance to look around for any landmarks. They'd only seen open ground covered in sand and rock formations. She doubted they would be dumb enough to attempt setting up base in Egypt after what had happened the previous year.

With Demolisher able to hear everything they said there was no point in discussing escape plans. A different topic of discussion did come to mind," Hey Tools, you ever noticed what Screamer looks like in his bi-pedal mode?"

"No. I'm usually too busy shooting at him or hiding from him." Tools was curious with where this was going, and a funny sensation of being eavesdropped made it apparent that Demolisher was listening in as well.

"He looks like a Dorrito chip with arms and legs."

Tools didn't just snicker he full out laughed. A second later the floor shook beneath them, Demolisher found this quite funny as well. "I can't believe I never noticed that before. Sunny and Sides will love it."

"You speak as if you will see them again human." Tools and Roxie jumped, they didn't think Demolisher would bother to acknowledge them.

Roxie stamped her foot down hard a few times," We will too you big jerk!"

"Oh I'm not thinking so, especially not you girl. Megatron is quite intent on your presence for his arrival. When Megatron is interested in someone they don't live for long. Hahahahaha!" Demolisher laughed deep and evilly, relishing in the fear that Roxie was trying not to show.

"What makes you so confident that Optimus and the others won't save us you glitch head." Tools refused to let the Decepticon think he'd won.

Demolisher laughed again, "Heheh. Because we're already here, and our location is completely concealed." Instead of rolling them out of his interior like before Demolisher transformed pulling them out as he went.

Roxie and Tools were greeted with the scenery of a dark, dank prison cell, Jolt was already chained to the wall by glowing handcuffs. "Demolisher, restrain them to the wall. Don't use the stasis cuffs, it will only burn their flesh clean off their bones." Starscream stood in the doorway observing the struggling humans as Demolisher set to work shoving metal pegs in the wall which he then attached normal chains to. The other end of the chains he tied around their upper torsos, finished Roxie and Tools were left wincing from the chains pinching their exposed skin.

Starscream stepped towards Roxie, his optics scrutinizing her carefully. He wanted to know what was so special about the human girl that Megatron would want her alive. _'Please don't scan me, please don't scan me, please don't scan me.' _Roxie glared back at Starscream defiantly but inside she was praying for a breather. She'd never gotten the batteries into her hearing mufflers, or got them on her ears, they still sat in her pockets leaving her ears unprotected from the sounds coming off of the Decepticons.

Starscream couldn't see anything exterior about the girl that would be of interest, the girl was infuriating him by glaring back. He would learn what Megatron wanted from her before Megatron arrived. He activated his scanners, the girl's glare vanished replaced by pain. He paused curious, relief flashed and she avoided his optics. Once more he activated his scanners and did a full run over her form. His scans came back showing that she had bruises but nothing more, his curiosity wasn't sated, he knew the look of pain even on an alien species, she had been in pain when he'd run his scans. "Something wrong girl?"

Roxie's head felt like it was going to split in half, Starscream's scans had given back her headache then morphed it into a vicious migraine. Just with Demolisher she refused to let the knowledge of her hearing be known, "I'm being offered up to Megatron, of course there's something wrong."

"That is not what I meant. My scans caused you pain, you will tell me why." Starscream was getting closer, if she tried to lie he would pick up on it,

"Starscream, Lord Megatron has just entered Earth's atmosphere. Time of arrival less than 20 minutes." Demolisher had left and immediately returned to relay the information.

This was not information Starscream wanted, Megatron was arriving earlier than anticipated. _'Cyclonus or Demolisher must have informed Megatron about the girl's capture, ignorant fools!' _"Tell me girl, what is it about you that Lord Megatron wants?"

"You don't know? I've been trying to figure it out since day one of this demented goose chase! Guess it's going to be a big surprise for all of us when Megatron tells the secret." Roxie's frustration to her whole situation had just escalated to near intolerable. If one more annoying and/or really bad thing happened she was going to start screaming insults until her throat went raw.

Starscream was taken back, the target not even knowing why she was captured was usually a lie, however there had been no indications of a lie in her words. Clenching his fist Starscream stormed off to make further changes to his plan.

Left alone at last Roxie sighed, looking over at Tools she asked," What do you make of all this?"

Tools had been struggling to get out of the chains the whole time, Starscream had simply ignored him knowing he wasn't going to get anywhere. At Roxie's question he gave it a break, looking over at her pained expression he thought about his words carefully," We're in a bad spot that's only going to get worse when Megatron gets here. Hopefully whatever it is that Megatron wants from you will please him enough to let you go after. As for myself and Jolt, we likely won't be given any kind of deal."

"You seriously think I'm going to just be on my merry way and let you two be tortured and killed? Nuh uh, I don't work that way. We're leaving this hellhole together, no matter what it takes." It sounded like a cheesy line from an action movie, but it was true. Tools had become one of the best friends she'd ever had, he's stuck by her even after she'd punched him and split his lip. Jolt was a pain in the ass with his attitude but she'd heard enough from others and his own spark to understand why he acted like he did. The day he'd chased her around the base and tied her to the tree was the day she got a glimpse of the real Jolt. He was a mech she wouldn't mind being good friends with. She couldn't stand the thought of never getting the chance to know more about both of them.

"Nngh…If it comes down to it, you're leaving without us you like it or not…My job is to keep you alive, even at the cost of my own life." Jolt's body was being kept in stasis by the stasis cuffs, but his head and neck were still operational. He'd come back online just in time to hear her comment.

She was relieved to see Jolt conscious but that didn't mean she liked what he'd said," That is bull shit. There are barely any of your species left, there are over a bajillion humans. I would rather die than let the Cybertronians get one more notch close to being extinct."

Jolt hadn't expected that, a glance at Tools showed an understanding. Both humans were in agreement on Roxie's statement._ 'Do Major Lennox, Chief Epps, and even Witwicky think the same way?' _If he ever saw them again he would have to look into it, at present he needed to get his own thoughts made clear to the foolish femme. "The Cybertronian race was doomed the day we lost the All Spark, without it to aid us in rebuilding Cybertron we will slowly diminish over the years. Knowing this it has been decided among us all that human lives should not be lost due to our existence. That is why I will do my job as a guardian."

Roxie was at a loss for words, she hadn't considered the reason for the guardian system besides keeping her out of Decepticon hands. She couldn't say anything in retaliation to try and change his mind, but his words had strengthened her resolve. She would not leave either of them to be destroyed by the Decepticons.

A loud roar of an aircraft shattered the brief silence. Lowering his voice to a whisper Tools growled," So much for it taking 20 minutes for Megatron to get here." A second aircraft followed after," Great, he brought a friend too." That was all they needed, more Decepticons to deal with.

"Megatron doesn't have friends, just lackeys that kiss his aft to stay alive." Jolt grumbled this while going through his list of known still living Decepticons to figure out who else they would be dealing with.

The ground began to vibrate rhythmically, with each 'thud' that steadily grew louder Roxie's heart skipped another beat. Feeling insecure Roxie struggled over to be closer to Tools for some form of comfort. The vibrations stopped not far from the doorway they could make out in the dim lighting. Very faintly Roxie and Jolt could hear voices," Welcome Lord…"

"You have done well Starscream…You might be rewarded…Good condition." This voice she'd never heard before was laced with an underlying twisted nature, She was hearing Megatron's voice and each word put a fresh feeling of fear in her mind. _'We're not going to survive. There is no reason or way for us to get out unscathed unless the Autobots save us. This isn't fair!' _This realization sinking in Roxie drooped in spirit and bravado.

Three sets of footsteps came to the doorway. The first two were Demolisher and Cyclonus, behind them came a mech with a cone shaped head and a set of wings on his back. _'Oh wow…He's more ridiculous looking than Dorritocon.' _Sucking in her lower lip Roxie stared curiously at the three," Alright you insignificants, Lord Megatron wants you front and center to decide your fate."

Demolisher and Cyclonus took hold of Jolt's locked body, he growled and cursed at them in Cybertronian. Cyclonus responded by punching Jolt square in the left optic causing it to go out. The funny cone headed 'Con took hold of Roxie and Tools after cutting part of the chain that connected them to the wall. They were carried to the center of the make shift base where it was just as dark. There were windows in the walls but the dark of night refused to let them see their surroundings better,

All three of them were thrown to the floor in front of a large poorly constructed metal throne. Laying on their fronts Roxie was able to see a familiar set of metal feet. Barely breathing Roxie slowly let her gaze travel up the rest of the large metal body. The last time she'd seen the body it had been frozen in an awkward standing position, it was odd to see the knees bent with elbows resting on them, then leading up to a cruelly smiling face set with red optics. "Hello Roxanne, remember me?"

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**GG23: Tomorrow morning I'm closing my poll! Besides that there's nothing really new to announce lol. Keep reading duckies!**


	24. The Straw That Broke The Camel's Back

**GG23: I know I know, you looked at the scroll bar and went "What? Another short chapter! WHY?" My reason being that I needed to keep the story awesomely tense, too much stuff in a chapter will make it not as impacting. Understand? But I have great news, I'm done writing horrible essays meaning the updates will be coming one after another in good timing :D "Am watching Tangled for the fifth time at the moment"**

**THANKS TO:**

**LynxbyLynx: **Love you too younger spark sister, even though your next chapter will be worse for me than the last xD I'm sure this chapter didn't meet your needs, don't worry I'm writing more!

**Hedgi: **I loved your fumbled exclamation xD I honestly didn't notice that that was a cliffy until you guys pointed it out lol. But you have to admit, it was a great ending :D

**Pyschoninja7: **Now I just feel ignorant for not knowing you had a Transformers fanfic D: I will look into it asap :D

**Standout4Christ: **I agree, you can be frickn Batman or Superman and still have to take a step back when seeing Megatron. Roxie is definitely going to need the luck these next few chapters.

**Dontgotaclue88: **I'm sorry! I swear I didn't know it was a cliff hanger! Hope this makes up for it :3

**KingofJesters: **Ahha, I'm sorry for being mean intentionally and then unintentionally the next chapter lol.

**Londongirl007: **Thank you, please keep reading!

**ChocoKoko: **Really? Huh, guess I'm incorporating humour when I'm not thinking about it :3

**Tailsdoll123: **I loved your review about the dorritos xD I never really thought about it that way!

**Latina Shewolf: **That's a thought I've had since I've kinda figured out the guardian thing, I try to keep Roxie her own character but that was something I wanted to share with other fans. Thanks for understanding it :) As for Megatron's plans...You're not going to like them.

**Jazzi Flynn: **Good thing you're keeping up now, there's plenty you wouldn't want to learn of till two weeks after its been posted ;D

**AutobotSyds643: **Ramjet? Never heard of him. The Cone head Decepticon is actually from Armada like Cyclonus and Demolisher, I was a big fan of the series so I liked to incorporate them in here.

**DISCLAIMER: TRANSFORMERS IS OWNED BY HASBRO. TOOLS BELONGS TO IRONAFT30. ROXANNE BELONGS TO ME.**

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**Chapter Twenty One - The Straw That Broke The Camel's Back**

"H- hi Megatron." Roxie just barely managed to get those words out of her lungs, the rest of her air supply was needed to keep breathing. The last time she'd seen Megatron was when she was 15, she'd gone to Sector Seven to bring her dad and Uncle Simian lunch. That day she got to sit next to Megatron's head, out of fun she'd sat on his shoulder and began to point at random guys and use a really deep voice to give orders.

Seeing the giant alien Decepticon leader she'd once treated as her playground walked and talking she really got an understanding for why his spark had never said nice things to her. "You do remember me. This pleases me, it saves me some of the trouble of explaining why I'm going to crush you once you've returned what is mine."

Roxie had to bite back a squeak, she was officially terrified. It appeared she'd survived almost five years of street chases and close encounters with the government, only to get caught and killed within ten minutes of seeing Megatron again. Even with the terror liquefying her lungs and making her very bones tremble Roxie needed to squeak," I will gladly hand over whatever it is that's yours but…I don't know what that is."

Megatron's optics narroed and got a few notches brighter, Jolt and Tools cursed. Megatron looked ready to activate his guns and turn Roxie into a crater. Just as suddenly Megatron seemed to remember something that caused him to ease back in his throne. "So he wasn't lying when she said it would be 'our' little secret. Scalpel, retrieve them for me." A little silver ant/crab mix climbed out from behind Megatron and down his body to the floor. Roxie could tell from his spectacle like things he was some kind of doctor, only making her more repulsed.

Scalpel walked over to Roxie and chuckled," Ooh, so you are ze little specimen zat has been so much trouble. I could have so much fun with you. But first, ze audio dampeners." Scalpel had grabbed her chin and turned her head this way and that, examining her closely. Tools struggled against his chains furiously. Sam had told him about the little field medic that had sent a probe bot into his brain and then even tried to remove his brain entirely. Seeing the nasty little crabbot examining Roxie made him uneasy, Scalpel's words only intensifying the feeling.

Scalpel hopped up onto Roxie's head, his little knife legs pricking the top of her scalp. He travelled down her back focusing on something. He got down to her lower back and stopped. He looked up at the cone shaped Decepticon and told him something in Cybertronian. Cone Head reached down and picked her up. She gave a nervous squeak, worried she was going to be squished so they could get what they wanted from her remains. Instead Cone Head cut the chains and dropped her on her back next to Tools. She'd fallen right on he tail bone causing her to groan and hiss in pain. Scalpel had watched and made notes of her reaction and responses to what happened. He waited another second then jumped onto her stomach on her left side. Using his blade limbs he cut open the left jean pocket, the extra bit of layering was removed giving Scalpel access to her hearing mufflers. She was watched as Scalpel grabbed one and scanned it over, he a gave a little chirp of, "Excellent!" and grabbed the other hearing muffler. As she watched the creepy Decepticon carry her precious hearing mufflers over to Megatron she lost all sense of self preservation," THOSE were what you wanted this whole time?"

Despite her aching tail bone she got up on her feet to properly glare at Megatron," This is just stupid! I got chased, shot at, battered, bruised and restrained just for my hearing mufflers? Instead of being all cryptic and hiding the reason for why you wanted me from your men, they could have told me those were what you wanted and I would have given them to you! You wouldn't have to send the whole lot of the idiots, you wouldn't have had to come down to Earth, and you wouldn't have to kill me!"

"You insignificant little -" The cone head 'Con stepped forward with the intent to squish her there and then on behalf of Megatron.

Roxie spun on him, her glare cutting him off," You shut it Thrust! Out of all the Decepticons I've heard you're the most stupid one of all. Any time one of your precious strategies fail, which is often, you kill an innocent mech putting the blame on them. If I could I would destroy your spark for all the femmes you've assaulted and killed."

Thrust was left speechless, the human had just called him out on his two biggest cruelties. The two things he'd never spoken of to any mech ever. Megatron had listened with mild interest to this whole display of anger, he hadn't missed the little slip up she'd made in the beginning of her rant towards Thrust. All the present Cons looked to Megatron on what to do, though all of them knew he was just going to kill her in some way.

Jolt and Tools had to give Roxie points in both bravery and stupidity. If Megatron was going to spare her before he certainly wasn't going to now.

Thrust regained his composure and turned to Megatron," My lord allow me to extinguish this little annoyance, it would be my honour, privilege and pleasure." Thrust's cannons began to build up a charge and was aimed directly at Roxie.

She'd calmed down after venting and realized what she'd done, seeing the barrel of the cannon caused her to take a small step back. _'Hopefully he has good aim and will hit all of me in one shot, no need to give Jolt and Tools extra nightmares of my mutilated corpse.' _

"No, I will be the only one to take her pitiful life." Megatron sounded very calm, which was very odd. Had any other Con or bot talked to him like Roxie had they would have had their spark blown out the second they paused for a breather.

"Uh, very well Lord Megatron. What shall be done with the other two then?" Jolt and Tools had not been forgotten, the time to decide their fates just hadn't been necessary yet. Megatron had what he wanted, Scalpel was at work dismantling the hearing mufflers to get to the audio dampeners. His blood red optics turned to the human and Autobot, both glared back at him in challenge.

Since Roxie's outburst a thought had begun to form, a thought that had once been a false proposition. He glanced at the girl who was looking between him and the human male with concern. His thought solidified with a nasty first step of preparation already decided. His optics on the blue Autbot designated Jolt he all but purred his orders," Take the Autobot out of my sight, as well as the human boy. Both are with the Autobots, they will be full of useful information. But they are to be kept alive. Cyclonus return Roxanne to her cell. We will speak again." There was a new secret in Megatron's spark, she could hear it trying to taunt her. She was once more grabbed by a large metal hand, she craned her neck to see around Cyclonus' body to try and see where Tools and Jolt were being taken to. Megatron had ordered the Cons to keep them alive, besides that he had given the Cons free reign over bow they were going to torture the information out of them.

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**GG23: ANNOUNCEMENTS!**

**1) As was voted upon the lovely lil (actually really long) smut one shot between Tools and Roxie is now posted under the name 'It Was Worth It.' I promise there are no super spoilers!**

**2) LynxbyLynx has an awesome fanfiction going called 'Transfan Mania' If you want a really good laugh mixed with some lusty romance that's the fanfic to read!**

**WARNING: No reader likes to know it, but their beloved fanfiction is getting close to the end. This is just an estimate but there might be 10 more chapters to come, possibly less. SORRY!  
**


	25. Scream For Me

**GG23: Despite the weather being crappy and I am not the most prepared for my last exam tomorrow I still feel incredible! I know I just rocked my last exam! On another note this chapter was actually suppose to be something else entirely, but as the length stretched on I decided to change it, meaning you guys got a filler chapter lol.**

**THANKS TO:**

**LynxbyLynx: I tried to do as you wished, but Scalpel is too creepy and needs to exist for the...oh dear almost let something slip there ;D**

**Tailsdoll123: I agree, Starscream is only good for imagining him as a giant dorrito that can kill you lol.**

**Dontgotaclue88: I love you for reviewing,but your reviews make it hard to comment back xD**

**Chocokoko: "Headtilt" Uh...something wrong with age?...You have me confused lol.**

**Standout4Christ: Im with the other authors in believing that Optimus and Megatron are siblings "shrugs." As for a sequel...weeeelll...that's a secret x3**

**Hedgi: Tehe, the time I get for all this writing actually comes from bringing my notebook into class, I think my profs just think Im diligently taking notes xD But my secret was discovered by my sci-fi prof from last semester...She just let it slide and read a couple chapters lol!**

**Latina Shewolf: The real surprise won't be coming until the next chapter, but I hope you get some kind of reaction from this chapter. As for Roxie's guts for standing up to the 'Cons, that was all done off of adrenaline and anger xD**

**Londongirl007: I'M GOING!**

**Psychoninja7: Lol, you're ending comment there made me think I need to get Mr. Narrator to start narrating the beginning and end of each chapter xD**

**BlazingXDarkness: For you my lovely new reviewer I shall write more and more until the end!**

**KingofJesters: xD Your review made me think, "Silly Roxie, secrets are for yourself!" Really bad but it amuses me lol.**

**Supergirlprime: 0.0...Bet you Scalpel would make his holoform that doctor just because of the resemblance. And as I told LynxbyLynx, Scalpel needs to survive for a reason.**

**AutobotSyds643: "Pats" Don't worry, I'm doing my best to make the chapters really long and juicy so the last few will be the best and worth ending :3**

**DISCLAIMER: TRANSFORMERS BELONGS TO HASBRO. ROXANNE BELONGS TO ME. TOOLS BELONGS TO IRONAFT30  
**

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**Chapter Twenty Two - Scream For Me**

The temporary base that the Decepticons were using was made entirely out of metal, and the thing about metal was that it was good for making echoes. Roxie had been dumped in the room they'd been in before, the doorway ended up not having a door but bars were placed in the frame to prevent any escape attempts. With there being no door to muffle the sound Roxie heard the beginning of Tools' torture. Tools' voice had always sounded pleasant to her ears no matter what he said. To hear that kind voice scream in agony was torture for her, Jolt's own pained cries joined Tools' not long after.

She put her hands over her ears to try and block the screams but to no avail. It slowly drove her to curl up into a ball and reassure herself that they would still be alive. The screaming abruptly stopped from both Tools and Jolt. For a while silence engulfed her, for which she was grateful. Footsteps came to the doorway of her cell, the bars were pulled back and Tools was thrown in.

Holes with scorched edges covered his clothes revealing horrible burn marks all over his skin. It looked like the Decepticons had burned cigarettes all over him. "Oh thank God, Tools are you alright? Can you hear me?"

Tools groaned, his throat raw and hoarse from screaming. He thought Demolisher would never tire of jabbing him with the electrodes and watch his body spasm. Him and Jolt had been brought to a room with tables and gruesome looking devices. He'd been strapped to a table and told point blank that he'd better tell them information or they would extract it from him. Tools told them just as frankly that they could kiss his ass first. That had started the game of ' Shock the human here and see what he does.' They had started on the lower levels tat only stung enough to make him hiss. Jolt was brought in shortly after and chained to the wall not too far from him. Not long after Tools figured out that he was being made an example for Jolt. Jolt didn't get the luxury of low power settings, he didn't know exactly what they were doing to his systems but Jolt had to fight not to scream. It was only then that Cyclonus had joined them and turned up the settings on his own torture device. Starscream had been the one to stop the 'Cons from continuing. They didn't get a single bit of information from him or Jolt, only the satisfaction of their screams.

With much effort Tools rolled himself over onto his back, the only place that wasn't covered in scorch marks and burnt skin. His brain wanted to shut down to stop feeling the burns but he fought against it with the sole thought that Roxie needed him. He forced his eyes open and felt his heart break, Roxie looked so scared and concerned. Her eyes were red rimmed from crying and her skin was far too pale. Doing his best to keep the pain from showing he smiled," Hey, if you can bitch at Megatron I can tolerate a bit of interrogation."

"You have no idea how much I regret doing that right now." His voice was scratchy but his words were the best reassurance she'd heard all day. Her relief was shattered when Jolt's screams started up again, and they sounded much worse.

Needy for physical comfort Roxie put her forehead on Tools', he didn't comment or complain. As he'd been tortured he cold really only hear his own screaming, hearing Jolt his heart went out to the mech, and even more of it went out to Roxie. She'd endured listening to both of their pain for the past two hours or however long it had actually been. Reaching up he dared to run his hand through her hair, she gave him a small smile to let him know he was doing the right thing.

Approaching foot steps caused him to stop, Roxie took hold of his hand and glared at the door. Starscream was the one to remove the bars and enter the cell. "Come here girl."

She couldn't hear the secrets of Starscream's spark and couldn't tell if he was going to take her to Megatron or carrying her off for her own torture session. Tools' grip on her and became painful, his thoughts clearly matching her own.

Starscream lost his patience waiting for her to make up her mind. Like everyone else he simply grabbed her breaking her grip on Tools' hand. But Starscream didn't leave, he raised her to optic level and did a scan three ways over her head. And just like that he dropped her back on the ground and left. Holding a hand to her throbbing head Roxie groaned," I'm starting to get worried."

"What did you hear from him?" For Roxie to say something like that made Tools worry even more than he had been since Cyclonus had showed up back in the city.

Roxie went back over to Tools to hold his hand again, staring over at the bar covered doorway Roxie quietly replied," It was faint but Starscream's spark said something about orders from Megatron to make something…for me."

"That really can't be good." Tools tightened his grip on Roxie's hand, his mind racing with all the possibilities of what Starscream had been ordered to make.

"Tools, I can't hear Jolt anymore." Roxie squeezed his hand to show her concern. More footsteps approached with voices laughing in Cybertronian, Roxie cringed from the added sound of metal dragging across metal.

Demolisher and Cyclonus opened the bars," Aw how cute, they're holding hands." Cyclonus used a phony sweet voice to say this.

"Elton John lover." Roxie smiled in smug victory when Tools broke out laughing and Demolisher gave Cyclonus a disgusted look.

"D-don't listen to her! She's a stupid squishy that's making slag up!" Cyclonus had to defend himself and keep his reputation.

Demolisher looked thoughtfully at the human girl, she'd claimed to be making up those things about himself. And she called Thrust out on things that they had never known him to do. Maybe a thorough look into her background was necessary.

They stepped further into the cell and let go of the burden they'd been carrying. Jolt's body fell limply to the floor, Tools released Roxie's hand to let her run over to the motionless mech. Demolisher and Cyclonus left, Demolisher clearly making fun of Cyclonus in Cybertronian. On her hands and knees next to Jolt's head Roxie looked over his body, he was missing some fingers and armour all over particularly around his chest area. His spark was still going but not as strongly, whatever they had done to him had taken a real toll on him, "He didn't deserve this, and you didn't deserve it either. Maybe if I hadn't -"

"Don't even finish that sentence. Stop blaming yourself right now Roxie. Being part of NEST means this was a risk from the very beginning. This is a result of MY decisions, not just because I was with you. Jolt would tell you the same thing. So please, just stop thinking like that." Tools wouldn't stand to hear Roxie say she blamed or regretted associating herself with him and all the others.

Roxie sighed," Still, you guys are going through hell and I was the original target. It just doesn't make sense to me."

"You're complaining you haven't been hurt?…Are you into S and M?" Roxie made a face at Tools even though he couldn't see it, _'Glad to know his sense of humour is intact still.'_

Jolt's spark hummed a bit louder and a whine came from his systems. His optics lit up making Roxie smile, groaning he tried to sit up," Jolt? Are you okay?"

He got himself up and put his back against the wall, a check over his systems told him he was in pretty bad shape. "Bad enough. What about you and Tools?"

"Still alive Jolt, good to see you're still with us." Tools waved his arm to show Jolt he could still move.

"And I'm doing much better now that you're conscious. Should I even ask what they did to you?" Roxie lightly brushed a hand over a nasty looking patch of exposed wires. Jolt hissed at the contact causing Roxie to withdraw her hand.

"No, you don't want to know. Plus it would be difficult to explain. What has happened since I went into stasis?" Jolt adjusted himself a bit more to properly take in Roxie and Tools' condition. Roxie looked slightly ruffled but much better in physical condition than what his scanners told of Tools.

Roxie rested her hand on a piece of armour plating, feeling it warm under hand. The contact gave her more comfort that she needed," Before you were brought in Starscream came and scanned me. From what I heard from his spark Megatron has him working on a special project for me."

"The only thing Megatron ever gives anyone is an early death." Jolt's systems were repairing themselves as quickly as they could but it wouldn't be fast enough by the sounds of things.

That was the answer Roxie had guessed she would get. Having exhausted herself from everything that had happened Roxie went to the other side of Jolt where she wouldn't be visible from the doorway. Laying down next to his hand she mumbled," I'm sorry all this happened to you guys. When we ge out I'll make it up to you." Jolt was amazed that the human body could relax in such a hostile environment. She even began to snore as if she were just back at base perfectly safe and content.

His hand was missing the middle and index finger and protested to any movement. He ignored the pain and protectively placed his hand over her body as a kind of shield. A scan over of Tools showed he'd also fallen asleep.

'_Megatron won't likely send his men after us again. They must be in their recharge cycles.' _Jolt thought this while attempting to reach out with his comm, he received only static. He would have been surprised if they hadn't blocked all and any possible way for them to call out for help. Jolt glanced down at Roxie once more. She was sleeping deeply only out of sheer exhaustion, nightmares would follow her out of the Decepticon base for years to come. He just hoped he would be there to calm her down after.

Knowing he wouldn't get another chance for a while Jolt allowed himself to go into recharge, he was going to need all the strength he could get to help Roxie anyway he could.

-a-b-c-d-e-f-g-h-I-j-k-l-m-n-o-p-q-r-s-t-u-v-w-x-y-z

Back at Diego Garcia Will, Epps and Simmons at a table in the mess hall with a map in front of them. Ever since they got back to base the three men had been trying to theorize where they could find the damn Decepticons. So far they were getting no where with it and only getting closer to killing each other.

"Those marks looked like they took off due East." Epps had a collection of pictures from the battle grounds on the table, one of them he pointed to furiously.

"We can't tell if that was their final track of a transitional one. This tread mark was on the very edge of the fight, there weren't any other tracks heading in that direction. These are Decepticons, I'm sure they'd have enough intelligence to cover their tracks on their way out." Will pointed to another picture to repeat his argument that the Decepticons had headed north.

Simmons had given no suggestions, only commentary on all their ideas. Instead he glared at the map demanding it to start glowing where the Decepticon base was located.

"What's that beeping noise?" Simmons broke out of his concentration from the question. He listened himself and heard the same faint beeping.

Practically leaping out of his chair he dug around through his pockets until he pulled out a small flashing pager. "YES! YES! Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!" Will and Epps stared after the man that had just taken off running yelling the same word. They exchanged a quick look before going after him.

Simmons went straight to the communications platform and hopped on one of the unused computers. Will, Epps, Sam, Maggie, Mikeala, Leo, and Glenn came up on the platform just as Simmons began to laugh while typing away like a mad man. Watching the screen go from a site they could tell was classified to a jumble of codes and numbers Sam had to ask," Simmons, what are you doing?"

Glenn put on his glasses and answered for the man," He's tracking a hacker. What did they hack into?"

"Roxie's medical background. I've had a personal detector on it for years. It's been almost hacked a few times by the government but we stopped then before they got anything. This is different. The hacker got in within a nanosecond, and there's only one way to do that." Simmons had a smug air to his explanation. His paranoia had finally paid off where it mattered most.

Everyone was on the same page now and watched without blinking to see if they could get their miracle. The codes and numbers abruptly turned into all zeros and filled the screen," NO! I was so close!" Simmons grabbed fistfuls of his hair in frustration. Right before the trace had completed the hacker completely nullified their connection, thus making the data trail non-existent.

"Did you learn anything? A general direction, the nearest city, something?" Will wasn't a tech specialist so he didn't know what they could get from this.

Glenn looked through the info that hadn't turned into zeros," Hey, found the last town your trace hit. Looks like…Moapa Town. Where the hell is Moapa Town?"

Simmons was already on it with his hand help GPS. "Moapa Town. Latitude 37, Longitude negative 115. It's right between St. George and Las Vegas."

Will and Epps took off in separate directions. Epps went to go let the bots know they had a starting point, Will went to gather the troops. Mooreshower had been given advanced warning that they would be on the move the second they learned something.

The teens left standing on the communications platform allowed themselves a small amount of hope, with this lead there was a slim chance that Will and Optimus would get to Roxie, Tools and Jolt before there was nothing left to hope for.

-z-y-x-w-v-u-t-s-r-q-p-o-n-m-l-k-j-I-h-g-f-e-d-c-b-a

Jolt had come out of recharge earlier than was good for him, it was done to keep guard for the two humans. Close to seven hours had passed which was plenty of recharge time for any Cybertronian. Tools woke up not long after on full alert once he felt and remembered what had happened the day before. Still incredibly sore from his burns Tools winced as he made himself sit up and try and get a better look at the cell for any kind of window. There was of course non, the only way in or out was the door with bars over it. Looking over at Roxie he had to wonder what her life would have been like had she not been born with acute hearing. _'Probably something much better than the hell she's in now.'_

A draft from the door swept into the cell and brushed against Roxie's face. She sneezed and shivered, bleary from a dreamless sleep she sat up rubbing her eyes," Hey guys….How you feeling?"

"Same as yesterday, plus hungry. Too bad the 'Cons made me hand over my stash of granola and chocolate bars." Tools and Roxie groaned in unison at the loss of chocolate. Their stomachs growled a second after at the loss of food in general.

Jolt rolled his optics and popped open a compartment on his left leg. Inside were water bottles and various boxes of granola bars. "Jolt, have I ever told you you're incredible?" Roxie reached in and pulled out a bottle for herself and one for Tools. With the granola bars she figured the best would be the trail mix, she never liked them but it was the healthiest. Since Tools was in no condition to really walk she brought the water and food over to him.

"How come they emptied Tools but not you Jolt?" Roxie stayed standing to turn in a circle and see more. Like Tools she hoped to find some kind of little nook or cranny to aid in escape. Nothing.

"With subspace pockets it would be pointless….I'm not explaining subspace to either of you." At the mention of subspace both Roxie and Tools had looked over at Jolt with interest written all over their faces, being denied they pouted like four year old children.

The sounds of voices drew all three of them to glare at the barred door. Footsteps soon accompanied the voices. Fearing they were coming to drag Jolt away for more torture Roxie ran over to him and clung to his leg. Demolisher and Cyclonus came to the door, their face plates contorted to devious intentions," Get over here femme."

"Why should I?" Jolt had called Roxie a rebel, so she was going to act like one.

"Do as we say or we'll have fun with your friends again." Cyclonus jestered with his head to Tools, who flipped him the finger.

Roxie glanced up at Jolt, he didn't seen to concerned, giving the sense that the two Decepticons were behaving on their own actions. Slowly she detached herself from Jolt and walked towards the bars of her cell," What do you want?"

"I read your files girl, it says you have much better hearing than other humans. So how did you hear our secrets?" Demolisher gave Roxie a look that dared her to try and lie again.

'_Damn!' _"Who else knows about my hearing? Answer me that and I'll answer you." Roxie's ill kept secret about her hearing may have gotten out, but it could still be a secret.

"Just myself and Cyclonus." Demolisher didn't see why she wanted to know and simply answered to get his answer.

She pointed to the exact spot where his spark was located in his chest," I can hear things from your spark. Will you leave now?"

Cyclonus snickered and Demolisher smiled just a bit bigger. Instead of leaving Demolisher opened the bars, Roxie back stepped quickly but was still snatched up. "Ugh! What the hell are you doing?"

Jolt struggled to stand, his weapons had been deactivated but he could still use his fists. Cyclonus ended his attempt by pointing his gun at Tools, this had also gotten Roxie to hold still. "You're coming with us for a klik. And be quiet, the others are still in recharge." Not sure what they were planning Roxie motioned to Tools and Jolt to just wait. The untrusting glared they gave to the two 'Cons gave her some reassurance that they would be monsters to deal with if anything happened to her.

Keeping quiet as asked Roxie did her best to memorize the hallways they walked down. They passed the main chamber where Megatron sat recharging on his throne. With his optics shuttered he looked like he had back in her childhood, the position of his body and memory of yesterday kept the nostalgia at bay.

They continued further down the hall to another larger room where Thrust and Starscream recharged in their alt modes. Thrust had chosen his alt mode to be an FA 18-D Hornet, explaining his cone head in his bi-pedal mode. Demolisher quietly stepped past Thrust, which was quite successful due to his treads. He got very close to Starscream and placed her on the floor next to him. Roxie first looked at Starscream, then up at Demolisher with a "what?"" expression. Demolisher pointed to where he would have ear then to Starscream and then his spark chamber.

Roxie slapped herself on the face, _'Of course, get the dirt on the guy in higher ranking so you can black mail him. Really should have seen that coming. Oh well, not complaining. I can get a better listen to what it is that he's making for Megatron.' _Roxie dared to step three steps closer to Starscream, almost putting her right under him. Squinting she focused only on the horrible music of his spark, if there was an instrument to match it it was the recorder on steroids being played by someone who was deaf. '_Starcream…Scientist…Create enhancer… restrainer… kill… Megatron…Wake up.' 'Uh oh.' _Sucking in a frightened squeak Roxie ran back towards Demolisher while making the motions to make a run for it. Demolisher figured out her frantic charades and scooped her up to then make it appear that he was casually walking out after waking up. Cyclonus had been monitoring Thrust but had taken off when Roxie began running.

Shifting metal and gears gave them fair warning just as they got to the door. "Demolisher, what are you doing with the human femme?" They'd both forgotten about the heat sensor thing, which made Roxie wonder what the temperature difference was.

Demolisher must not have thought this far ahead, to save her own life she made herself appear unamused. Jerking a thumb at Demolisher she covered for him" Nuts and bolts for brains here thought it would be funny to see Jolt and Tools' reaction when they woke up and found me missing."

Demolisher jumped on the lie," Who are you calling nuts and bolts? And it will be funny, right Starscream?"

Starscream's face plates seemed to mirror Roxie's improvised expression. "She is correct in her assumption of your intelligence. Hand her over, I will return her to the cell. Prepare the equipment for today's interrogation."

"What? No! You did enough yesterday! Leave them alone!" Panic overtook her charade, just thinking of Jolt and Tools enduring further pain made her stomach cramp in fear and worry.

"Since we did not acquire any information from either of them, it is clear we didn't use enough persuasion. That shall be corrected with today's interrogation, this time the good doctor will be lending us a hand. He is even more persuasive than Cyclonus and Thrust combined."

"Oh ho ho, yes. I am very persuasive indeed. Ze human shall answer ze questions we ask. And I shall learn much more about you alien species." Scalpel had been close to Starscream during recharge, that or he'd been in Starscream's cock pit for some reason. He crawled down Starscream's arm and got right into Roxie's face scanning her gleefully.

"Touch Tools or Jolt and I will tear you into pieces you nasty bug! STOP SCANNING ME DAMMIT!" Roxie's anger forced back her fear, she managed to get one of her arms free from Starscream's fist and grab Scalpel by what she thought was the throat. Scalpel laughed and stabbed her arm. She released him with a yelp, Scalpel had driven his arm in deep, a promise for a new scar. Starscream ha deliberately walked slowly past the main chamber and the recharging Megatron, his sensors focused on his leader. Megatron didn't make any movement or indication that he'd heard Roxie's threats to the doctor. It was a test to see if Megatron's audio dampeners had been properly installed.

Scalpel was vivid with joy, he had been given permission to run tests on the human male having done well in putting Megatron's audio dampeners back in place. His first alien specimen had been taken away by the Autobots before he could properly explore his systems. To plunge his claws into a specimen's flesh would be quite pleasing. His specimen came into view through the bars of the containment cell.

Roxie saw the creepy crab turn in Tools' direction, excitement vibrating off its tiny spark. _'Oh no you don't!' _Scalpel jumped off of Starscream's hand a second before Starscream dumped Roxie on the floor. Tools glared at the tony doctor that eagerly crawled towards him. Putting faith in her green converse Roxie made a jump for Scalpel, he scuttled out of the way at the last second. "You will have your turn once Lord Megatron gives me permission. It is his turn first."

"How about you die…first!" Roxie chased Scalpel around the cell trying to stomp on him. Tools wanted to stop her, worried that Scalpel would turn the tables and kill her instead. Starscream watched from the doorway finding great amusement in the girl's feeble attempt to destroy the doctor. Jolt wished it was him doing the chasing, he would have crushed Scalpel in one stomp.

'_**Starscream, the equipment is all set. Cyclonus and I will be there in a moment.' **_Demolisher's update let Starscream know the fun was to end. _**' Scalpel, quit messing around and sedate both of the humans.'**_

Scalpel acted immediately, he let Roxie stomp down on a couple legs. He detached them to cling to Roxie's leg, two more of his arms switched out for a needle which he stabbed into the back of her leg. "Ah! What did you just…Oh…Dammit." It wa a fast acting drug that gave Roxie barely a second to realize she'd been sedated. Tools wasn't able to move to catch her and winced when she hit the floor. _'No blood or strangely bent limbs, she'll just have a bump on her head.'_

He felt something stab into his own leg, glaring down at the crafty doctor," You better pray to Primus… We don't…catch…you." Tools had it a bit better when he lost consciousness, since he was only sitting up the fall wasn't bad enough to even give him a lump.

Demolisher and Cyclonus entered the cell to see Jolt trying to stand to go after Scalpel, Scalpel had taken hold of Tools' shirt collar and was dragging him off. (Which caused the two Cons to wonder what kind of strength their field medic had.) "Don't just stand there gawking, grab the Autobot. Lord Megatron will be expecting us to have started by the time he comes out of recharge." Starscream stepped forward and picked up Tools along with Scalpel. Demolisher and Cyclonus gave him dirty looks for taking the easy job. Jolt was going to be a handful for them.

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**GG23: JUST A REMINDER THAT YOU GUYS SHOULD CHECK MY PROFILE PAGE FOR PICTURE LINKS, I DON'T UPDATE AND ADD LINKS THE SAME DAY ;D**


	26. Her Decision

**GG23: HAPPY EASTER IF YOU CELEBRATE IT! Consider this my gift to you all :3 Though I wasn't entirely satisfied with this chapter, yea it gave me the proper feeling I was looking for but how I wrote it feels really repetitive. Let me know, is the writing repetitive?**

**THANKS TO:**

**LynxbyLynx: **We have already discussed the death of Scalpel, patience lil spark. "Pats on head."

**Ironaft30: **That is made clear about Harper in this chapter :3

**ChocoKoko:** Lol, don't you hate that? xD

**KingofJesters: **Sorry to say nothing good...and then some..."fidget."

**Londongirl007: **And it just gets better :P

**Hedgi: **Ugh, I know what you mean about the commas. No offense to new fanfic writers, but some of them have an excellent story but I read so many errors and I turn away. Thank you, it's great to hear you're affection for this, sorry that I have to end it soon though. And to answer your question, depends on the story I'm going for. I try to change my endings when I can. In example, my not-touched-for-a-very-long-time pokemon fanfic wasn't going to have a very happy ending (sorry if any of you were reading it for that spoiler.)

**Standout4Christ: **xD That's a new comparison I haven't thought of. "Crazy as a fox."

**Tailsdoll123: **Be doing it like evil character organ player xD

**Dontgotaclue88: **Two jobs? "whistles" Then thank you for reviewing at all! Consider each chapter a gift for getting another long day of work accomplished :3

**Jazzi Flynn: **Megatron's plans are worse as you'll read here.

**Latina Shewolf: **Thank you! I actually ended up doing well on all my exams, which I was not expecting. And it's only going to get worse, hopefully you can read through to the end.

**AutobotSyds643: **Um...Is this a good compromise a good start?

**SuperGirlPrime: **Pfft, lol! That or the Spice Girls xD Megatron is definitely Coheed and Cambria.

**DISCLAIMER: TRANSFORMERS IS OWNED BY HASBRO. TOOLS IS OWNED BY IRONAFT30. ROXANNE IS OWNED BY ME.**

* * *

**Chapter Twenty Three - Her Decision**

'_Screaming, someone was screaming…No, two people are screaming. I know those voices. Greg! Jolt! NO!' _Roxie's eyes flew open, she was sitting up facing a room she didn't know. "Ah, it seems the sedative has finally worn off." Chains, her upper torso was bundled up in chains, leading back to a wall. She craned her neck up, Megatron sat next to her on his throne.

"Wh-what am I doing here? I-I was in the cell." Roxie struggled against the chains wincing when they caught skin and pinched.

"I thought you would get lonely in your cell while your friends were…occupied. Don't you enjoy my company Roxanne?" His voice was mocking, he couldn't care less what she thought.

At the mention of Tools and Jolt their screams came to her louder then when she'd been in her cell. Frantic to help them she got her feet under her to stand and get more friction. In a kind of crouch she pulled against the chain that connected to the wall. Megatron only watched with his head resting on his hand. The agony of Tools' voice increased, Roxie pulled harder against the chain. Jolt went quiet letting her only hear Tools.

The feeling of helplessness ate at her, it needed to stop, if they didn't stop they would kill Tools and Jolt even if they didn't intend to.

Megatron watched the girl go to her knees, fluid coming from her eyes. The humans called it crying, shedding tears, a physical reaction to pain and emotion. She was breaking down and he relished in it. Her mouth began to move, forming words without the voice. Roxie took a deep breath," Pl…please stop. Stop."

"Are you telling me to do something Roxanne? I can't hear you." _'Beg.' _It was the one word he really meant, he knew from all those years of her senselessly talking to him that she had just enough pride to never beg for anything. She'd only begged once in her life and that was for ice cream when she was six.

Tears still running down her cheeks Roxie glared at him. Megatron smiled just enough to show he knew she was going to do it. Jolt's screams started again, louder and overpowering Tools. Her little bit of pride shattered, Roxie lowered her head, afraid to see the victory gleaming in Megatron's optics. " Please make them stop Megatron." She projected her voice just enough so Megatron couldn't claim to not hear.

The screaming stopped, a second later foot steps approached. Starscream dropped a bloody Tools next to Roxie, his arms were covered in gashes that had been precisely made then cauterized, she counted ten on each arm. Jolt was thrown at Megatron's feet, nearly all of his armour plating was missing as well as more of his fingers. "Oh god…Tools…Jolt."

"There not only did I spare them further pain, I even let you see them alive." Megatron oozed pleasure at the sight of the torn apart Autobot and the devastated girl. His plan was working much better than he'd planned. **'**_**Starscream, is it finished?'**_

'_**Not yet Lord Megatron, our tests showed it needs some minor calibrations first.' **_Star scream's optics flicked to the two humans. Tools had groaned and was coming around. Roxie struggled to at least get closer to him.

'_**Then get that done now. If it doesn't meet my expectations I'll be calibrating you.' **_Starscream bowed out of the room to do as told.

"R-Roxie? What?" Tools was in even more pain than yesterday, all thanks to Scalpel. When he'd woken up from the sedative he'd felt pain in his left arm, he'd looked down and found the doctor cutting into his arm to watch the blood flow. Looking further down his arm there were other wounds that had been closed by cauterizing. As the sedative slowly wore off more the pain intensified. The next cut was drawn out Scalpel watching Tools' face contort in pain. The third cut was where his screaming began, bringing much joy to Scalpel.

"Tools what did they do to you?" Tools was conscious but the pain showing from his eyes made Roxie wish he could have stayed asleep.

"I have learned much from ze specimen and I shall learn more with more extensive delicate procedures," Scalpel had scuttled up onto the armrest of Megatron's throne and peered down at the humans as Megatron was.

Tools visibly cringed at the thought of Scalpel getting inside to poke at his organs. She couldn't comfort him with words, the present Decepticons would just taunt them. Bound by chains she couldn't provide physical comfort either. Her mind was racing with any ideas that could give Tools a chance to escape, Jolt as well. They wouldn't survive long with the treatment they were receiving. A single word reached her, a word she hadn't expected. It didn't come from her mind or Tools, it came from Megatron.

'_Want.' _It was being whispered loudly by his spark. He wanted something from her…_'No, he wants something from me.' _Taking in a deep shuddering breathe to clear her throat she forced herself to stand. Roxie wanted to glare but her fear of the question she was going to ask and get an answer for distilled her strength," What do you want?"

"I want many things Roxanne. The list is far too long to tell." Megatron was smiling and it terrified her.

"What do you want from me? You've already taken back your audio dampeners." The other Decepticons looked from the human girl to their master, curious to see how this played out.

Megatron rose from his throne to step around and properly stare down at Roxie. Gesturing to the motionless body of Jolt and the injured Tools Megatron asked in turn," What are these pathetic pieces of life worth to you girl?"

Roxie looked over at Jolt, his body nearly destroyed, his spark pulsing weakly to keep his systems functioning to repair any damage they can. She looked down at Tools, he was staring back at her his eyes hard with silent pleading for her to stop going down this dangerous path. She gave him an apologetic smile, meeting Megatron's optics she gave him her absolute answer," Everything."

Faster than his bulk and size suggested Megatron grabbed Roxie and pulled the chain from the wall. Bringing her right to optic level to see her expression clearly he answered her original question," Then I want everything. In exchange those two will be released."

"NO! Roxie don't!" Tools struggled to move, he had to save her. He wouldn't let her make the deal, it wasn't worth the consequences.

Roxie wasn't a fool, Megatron's spark told her the truth. He would kill Tools and Jolt before releasing them. Holding her head a bit higher she demanded," Only if they are released alive and near a town or city will you get what you want. I'll know if they're killed or abandoned, if that happens I'll kill myself. Leaving you with nothing."

Megatron's optics narrowed and a growl came through his vocalizer. "That price is higher than what you offer. But that can be adjusted. Do we have a deal?"

Roxie glanced at Jolt his optics starting to glow, Tools was almost on his feet willing to try and attack Megatron. _'They need to get out of here. They still have a better future ahead of them than I ever did.' _"Deal." The moment she said the word she felt her freedom vanish, her decision had saved Jolt and Tools but had cost her whatever she had left of herself. She didn't regret it.

Megatron's smile took on a triumphant tilt, his plan had succeeded. He'd gotten what he wanted, his grip tightened on her body as he turned to leave for another room. His spark hummed with his delighted intensions, the words made Roxie's thoughts come to a stand still. _'Mark…property.'_

They entered the room that Jolt and Tools had been tortured in, she figured this out from the blood on one table and pieces of Jolt's armour laying near a wall. Megatron cut through the chains, her shirt and bra from behind leaving her bare back exposed. He pinned her stomach down using little arms extended from his fingers. Fear caused her to struggle.

Megatron cast his optics across the room looking for what he needed. A very small piece of bent metal, he picked it up to scan the material. Judging it to be suitable more claws came from the hand holding the metal to twist it. Roxie caught a glimpse of it but couldn't see any kind of shape or meaning from the form.

Scalpel, summoned by a silent call entered the room. Megatron gave the doctor instructions in Cybertronian, Scalpel chuckled while climbing up to the piece of metal. Three of his legs switched out for a blow torch.

Tools was being held against the wall by Thrust's hand, once he'd gotten stable on his feet he tried to follow after Megatron and Roxie. Not wanting Lord Megatron's wrath, or any other trouble the human could cause Thrust had immediately immobilized Tools.

Jolt had come back online just in time to see Megatron carry Roxie towards the room they'd been interrogated in. Fearing the worst he'd lashed out, Cyclonus lay on the floor with a broken leg. Demolisher had acted and used his excessive weight to keep Jolt down on the floor. They had been in this position for several minutes, the Decepticons starting to wonder if their leader had finally just killed her. Jolt and Tools feared more that Scalpel (they'd seen him leave) had sedated her first.

Doubt and silence were pierced by the most agonized scream to travel through the base. Roxie's voice was loud enough to make the Decepticons cringe until they lowered the amount of audio they could receive.

The scream died down just as quickly as it started, Tools struggled his senses lost to the fear and fury that consumed him. "ROXANNE! ROXANNE!" Blood came from his fists, his nails dug into his palms from clenching and continuously beating down on Thrust's hand.

Cyclonus had to hop over on his one leg and pi down Jolt's arms. The scream had driven Jolt into a battle frenzy, his arms had gotten free and were put to use beating the slag out of Demolisher's helm. _**'Starscream, we're going to need the stasis cuffs.' **_Demolisher didn't care about whatever Starscream was doing, they needed to restrain the Autobot or risk having to offline him and getting Megatron's fist through their chests.

'_**You incompetent fools are useless.' **_Starscream's insult only made Demolisher that much edgier to put Jolt down once and for all.

Another scream came from the interrogation chamber. Jolt got one hand free and busted Cyclonus' nose and left optic. Starscream came in just in time to slap on the stasis cuffs before Jolt could use that free hand to pull Cyclonus' main energon line in his neck.

The scream ended and everyone held their breathe, anticipating another scream and a new onslaught of behaviour from their captives.

The screaming didn't happen again and Megatron returned to the main chamber. Non too gently he dropped Roxie on he floor by his throne, she'd landed face down letting all present see what had happened. Thrust released Tools, he ran to her side stopping short at the sight of Megatron's handy work. Branded into the skin on her back was a glyph that Tools could only guess was some kind of claim of ownership. "Roxie…" She didn't move but her body shook as she cried and fought to keep from screaming further.

Noticing her lack of clothing Tools quickly removed his olive long sleeved shirt, he still had a grey muscle shirt underneath allowing the full extent of his previous interrogations to be seen.

Being careful to not let the fabric rub against the fresh burn he wrapped the shirt around her and pulled her up off the floor. She clung to him tightly, his very presence giving her some semblance of peace. Her back burned and throbbed in sheer agony to the treatment, causing her to ask why she was enduring the torture. Tools hugged her back, reminding her of the answer. Tools and Jolt would be free and would live. Even knowing this she cried with her face against his chest over her loss of freedom, as the brand on her back proclaimed, she belonged to Megatron and the Decepticons now.

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**GG23: Tomorrow I will likely be adding a link to my page of a fanart Ironaft30 did for this chapter a very long time ago, but I had to wait to get this chapter out to post it. So keep an eye on my profile peeps! Have a good holiday!**


	27. Recovery

**GG23: Gotta love fanfic writers when they get their summer breaks, no more assignments to hinder their writing and typing time xD Though I have to say that I'm not happy with how this chapter started out, had to force it. As it went on and I got where my thoughts were going I went crazy fast just to let you lovely peeps read faster.**

**THANKS TO:**

**LynxbyLynx: **Maybe I should cease sending you things and spoilers from now on :p Just kidding don't worry.

**KingofJesters: **It honestly had to be done just for the messed up ending of this chapter xD

**Dontgotaclue88: **I know as soon as I got the idea in general I had figure out a way to stop it from making it kinktastic and give the readers the wrong idea -.-' But when you're working with something as twisted as this, its kinda hard right?

**Ironaft30: **Yay for more fanart! Though no promises on that armour stuff getting included anytime soon.

**ChocoKoko: **Maybe a little more warning next time ahha.

**Hedgi: **Um...you might want to brace yourself for the end of this chapter...just a heads up ahha.

**Standout4Christ: **Uh pretty intense comparison there, not sure it's accurate though lol.

**Tailsdoll123: **I like to think of it as Megatron being fair, I mean, Roxie would be pretty Maryish if she got out of the whole ordeal undamaged right?

**Latina Shewolf: **D: I wasn't aiming for tears only the "OMFG" reaction with that last chapter. Though it just shows how into the story you are, which is always good...ish...depending lol.

**Kingdom of Zero: **Thanks, though you have a lot of reading to do to catch up. Plus I have twitter, I tried to find you but a lot of other things came up and I couldn't tell which was you "shrugs."

**Jazzi Flynn: **If you read the other readers thanks you'll notice I'm giving MORE warning :P

**AutobotSyds643: **And its just going to get more crazy!

**Psychoninja7: **I know, I tried to bring back some humour this chapter.

**DISCLAIMER: HASBRO OWNS TRANSFORMERS. IRONAFT30 OWNS TOOLS. ROXANNE BELONGS TO ME...AND NOW MEGATRON XD**

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**Chapter Twenty-Four - Recovery**

"Alright, we need to keep a low profile. Do not disclose any information to civilians but get any information you can." The N.E.S.T soldiers had arrived at Moapa Town two hours after sunrise when people were just beginning to get to work and preparing for the usual day of summer heat.

The Autobots still couldn't pick up a signal from Jolt or Tools, this didn't discourage them, not with the first bit of hope still fresh. Their first order of business was to talk to the locals and see if they'd caught sight of anything abnormal.

They broke off into groups of five to cover the majority of the town. The Autobots broke off as well, Optimus going with Will and Epps. They needed to speak to the town representative and reassure him there wasn't going to be an enemy attack.

Sideswipe and Sunstreaker refused to carry any soldiers wanting to do a search of their own. Tools was the only human they allowed into their inner circle, they knew he would be thick headed enough to keep looking if one of them had been captured. It was only right to do the same. They went to the roads on the very outskirts of the town and went in opposite directions.

Sideswipe cast his sensors out as far as they could reach, he also paid attention to the groups of people he passed. Unlike his brother they didn't disturb him, only upset if they rubbed him the wrong way. Galloway could pay for the finest wash and wax for all the Autobots and Sideswipe would still look for an opportunity to destroy his car and humiliate him.

Sideswipe passed a small group of children, they were on the top of a playground set taking turns looking out a pair of binoculars. Curious he slowed and followed the direction of their gaze. All he could see was the desert, anyone else would have though they'd seen some kind of animal and just ignored the kids. Sideswipe knew otherwise, a human boy had killed Megatron so it was possible that other human youths could know and do things that were unexpected. _**'If there are any men that are good with kids, come to my location. A group of children might know something.' **_

Two minutes later Ironhide pulled up and let two men out of the cab. They approached the kids casually with their helmets under their arms. Sideswipe and Ironhide were too far to pick up the conversation, their sparks pulsed a bit quicker when the kids started pointing out to the desert and making hand gestures. The two men saluted the kids with huge smiles, the kids saluted back and went about scouting the desert with a more organized appearance.

Turned away from the children the soldiers got on their comms, "The kids say they saw something like a helicopter drop something big way off in the distance. They only saw it as a silhouette and through their binoculars. They didn't see anything since then."

'_**How long ago was that?' **_The fresh bit of hope escalated into a complete belief that they'd found their friends.

"The one that saw the helicopter said it was at 0:600 when he caught sight of the shape." Sideswipe took off in the direction the kids had been looking. Ironhide had to wait until the two men got back into the bad before following after.

Chromia, Arcee, and Flareup came flying out of the town after receiving the info at the same time as the other Autobots. Will and Epps were just thanking the mayor for his cooperation when they got the update. The mayor blamed the trick of the light for seeing the doors on the semi open before the two military men reached the truck.

'_**Optimus I'm getting a faint signal for both Jolt and Gregory Harper. Two kilometres in the current direction.' **_Ratchet's voice was clipped, along with the signal reading Ratchet got a rough outline of Jolt's condition, his voice told Optimus that Jolt's condition wasn't good. Will and Epps figured this out as well when the speedometer on Optimus' dash moved to go over the 140 mark.

Sideswipe and the triplets spotted Jolt first. "Jolt! Roxie! Greg!" Chromia transformed on the go without losing speed.

Sideswipe transformed just as he reached Jolt. Jolt was laying on his side in the sand and needed to be turned over, revealing Tools laying in the shade that Jolt's body provided. Their condition stirred battle programming in them all. "Move! Jolt needs immediate attention." Ratchet joined them at the same time as Ironhide and his carry ons. Two of the men among them were medically trained and went straight to Tools.

Tools was starting to come around when Will and Epps got over to him. Seeing his arms with the burns and cauterized wounds, as well as his bloody hands and slowly bruising chest they felt like shooting something. Tools groaned," R-Roxie…ROXIE!" He attempted to sit up and fell right back down moaning from the pain.

"Tools. Tools, can you hear me. It's Will. Tools?" Will hovered right over Tools so he would see him when he opened his eyes.

"W-Will? L-Lennox? We, we have to save her. We have to get Roxie back." Tools couldn't concentrate but he was relieved to have been found, they could help Roxie.

" We will but first we need to know where to go and what happened? Can you tell us?" A medic went to Tools' other side and helped him sit up to drink some water.

The water tasted like the best beverage in the world, he drank the canteen dry. The cool water in his systems he could focus a bit more. He turned to his commanding officer," Roxie, she made a deal with Megatron for our release. If we don't get back to their base now we'll never see Roxie again."

Optimus, Ironhide, Chromia and FlareUp had listened in on what Tools had to say. The mention of a deal clenched their sparks. Optimus was the one to ask," Gregory, what did Megatron take in exchange for your release?"

His eyes turned into a pure icicle glare remembering the horrid cost that Roxie had paid," She gave Megatron her own freedom. Optimus…Megatron branded her."

Roxie felt entirely alone. Megatron had let Tools comfort her for only a few minutes. Without warning Thrust took Tools from her hold, she couldn't watch and chose to block out his voice as he called out her name. Her head lowered she met Jolt's optics, they glowed with the promise to return and save her. Just as they picked up his body to drag him out she heard it. The song, her mother's song, her lullaby. It wasn't her mother's voice humming the song, it was her own from the day Jolt had found her alone on the beach. _'He'd been there the whole time.' _That was what the song told her, and it was his way of telling her he was going to be there for her again. He wasn't going to abandon her. Roxie had smiled, she believed he was going to come back for her, him and Tools would return for her and get back her freedom.

This had happened hours ago, she laid on the cool floor stomach down with Tools' shirt on. She rested her head on her arms to take deep breathes from the fabric, the scent was like a slow acting medicine. The pain from her back had slightly dimmed from lack of movement and her mind was organizing different ideas.

Megatron had left her alone to discuss things in Cybertronian to his gathered mechs. Starscream had left when Jolt had been put in the stasis cuffs. Roxie could tell something was up when the room went silent upon his return. Her curiosity getting the better of her she turned her head to look at the collection of jerks. They'd parted for Starscream to step straight to Megatron," Master, the calibrations are complete. Your requested item is finished." Starscream held his hand out palm up, Roxie squinted to see whatever it was he'd finished.

Megatron reached forward and plucked small metal circle from Starscream's palm. "Well done Starscream. Roxanne, come here girl."

'_It's the thing he ordered Starscream to make for me. Why do I have a sinking feeling its just going to make my life worse?' _Getting on her feet took a decent amount of effort not to scream. She kept her back straight so the skin didn't shift and put her hands on her hips, "You seem to be forgetting that I'm small, injured and your throne is made of metal with no possibility for me to climb." Roxie lost her freedom in general but she would keep her freedom of speech for as long as possible.

Megatron made no comment but his optics had a slight unimpressed glare to them. He leant down and grabbed her, earning him a satisfying squeak for touching her back. He put her on her feet on the armrest, Megatron placed the little metal circle next to her. Curious Roxie kneeled down to get a better look. The circle had glyphs carved all around the outside. At one point there was a clear line that connected the circle to make it whole. The little circle looked just big enough to fit around a human neck. Having figured out the mystery item she glared at Megatron," I would rather die than wear a collar like some kind of human dog. You already burnt your name or whatever on my back. What is the point of it besides humiliating me?"

"Whoever said you were getting the option?" Megatron's question made her back step. Jumping off the armrest was a very inviting idea.

Clicking caused Roxie to turn around in time to have Scalpel jump onto her back, two of his legs landing on some of the burn. "OW! OFF! OFF! Demon crab be gone!" Scalpel chuckled while crawling around Roxie's shoulders avoiding her hands. He got up on her head where he made himself comfortable by snagging hair. Four little shrimp drones with thrusters took hold of the collar and raised if off the armrest.

'_Back pain be damned!' _The four little shrimps flew the collar straight for her neck, Roxie ducked right before it made contact. "I said no!" The shrimps spun around, their little optics looked to their master Scalpel. Scalpel sent a silent command to wait.

Megatron had divulged in what information he knew of Roxanne to Scalpel the nanosecond he decided to keep her. This included the knowledge of her sensitive hearing. He turned his scanners to full strength and aimed them straight for her ears. Unprepared and unprotected Roxie screamed," STOP!" She put her hands to her ears to try and save them. The shrimp drones took the moment and put their thrusters into top speed.

The amount of speed and force used to put the collar on knocked Roxie over onto her rear. A loud 'click' signified the clasp of the collar. Scalpel pat Roxie on the head before jumping off and away from her reach. The Decepticons smirked and snickered as this had all happened, Thrust was particularly pleased to see the human girl get collared like the wild primitive life form he saw her as. Roxie hated the collar the second it touched her skin. She hated it for what it stood for and for how it felt. The metal was freezing and any movement caused it to rub the skin it touched. Roxie didn't care that she looked like a dog she pulled and pried at the collar as much as possible. "You will never remove it girl. Only Lord Megatron can remove it." Starscream was just as amused as the others to see the human flop around pulling at her collar. What he told her about Megatron being the only one able to remove the collar was a lie, he too was able to remove it. He just needed to wait for the right time to offer her the chance.

Continuing to pry despite Starscream's words Roxie growled," And let me guess, it comes with a few surprises for your sick amusement?"

"Allow me to give a demonstration Master." Starscream could see a dark glint in Megatron's optics. He wanted to tease the girl more, but Starscream thought it would be more entertaining to show off his craftsmanship

Roxie warily eyed the Doritos shaped mech, he didn't want to demonstrate the collar's capabilities to answer her question. He wanted to do it to show off in front of the others, she didn't need to listen to his spark to know that, it oozed from every inch of him.

Starscream stepped closer to Roxie, his optics zeroing in on the collar. The collar responded when he chirped a noise that must have been a single word in Cybertronian. Two matching glyphs on both sides of the collar sank in opening a space. Two ear buds connected to wires rose up and went into her ears. All at once everything sounded louder, the faint whispers she'd been hearing from Megatron's spark became words being spoken from a voice right next to her. Roxie whimpered, she couldn't handle so much noise. "T-turn this thing off!"

"You should be grateful Roxanne, with this your human range of 10 meters becomes 20." Back when Megatron had been frozen Richard had told him everything about Roxanne's hearing. When he had removed his audio dampeners to decrease the amount of noise she could hear he thought the human foolish. Gifts were meant to be made stronger not weaker. Megatron saw Roxanne as a gift delivered to him from Primus. He would make her stronger and put her to use against his enemies, with her hearing enhanced his soldiers couldn't lie to him and he would learn all the secrets of his captured enemies.

The ear buds and the things that attached them to the collar were made of solid metal that she couldn't bend and remove from her ears. Utterly frustrated Roxie sat down and put her head between her knees. Doing her best to ignore the extra noise Roxie had to ask," Does this stupid collar do anything else I should know about?"

"Your present has a locator built in, allowing me to know where you are at all times." Megatron smiled just a bit bigger when Roxie let out a large groan.

Cyclonus cackled loudly while the others chuckled, Roxie raised her head and glared at the lot of them," Keep laughing and Megatron learns all your little secrets. Especially yours Cyclonus." They all went silent except for Megatron who laughed, Roxanne was an excellent gift indeed. He was never going to let her go.

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"Tools, you have cracked ribs and those burns need to be properly taken care of. You're not going anywhere." Will pushed Tools down for a third time.

They'd gotten an air carrier to pick up Jolt and a helicopter to pick up Tools to take him to the nearest hospital. Some testing showed he was close to sever dehydration when they'd gotten him. Jolt and Ratchet had been taken to the nearest military base for Jolt's recovery work to get properly done.

Tools glared at Will," My cracked ribs are nothing and these burns will be just the way they are after we get Roxie back. I'll take some morphine and be perfectly fine."

"Forget it Tools I'm not risking your life, not after Roxie made sure you could stay alive. You're staying in this hospital bed, I'm leaving a man behind to guard your door too." Will pushed Tools down once more and left.

Down in the hospital parking lot Optimus and most of the other Autobots waited with running engines. Epps was in Ironhide's passenger seat when Will got in," He fight with you to go?"

"Yea, the doctor is going to have a hell of a time knocking him out to take care of those burns. How is Jolt doing Ironhide?" They were on the move for the airport to get back on the air carrier. Jolt had managed to record the coordinates of the place the Decepticons had been keeping them without being detected. Matching the coordinates on a map they found an abandoned military bunker out in the desert when they'd do experiments with bombs.

"Ratchet got him stabilized but needs to keep him in stasis. Jolt is acting just like Tools and is insisting on joining us in getting Roxanne back." Ironhide knew how the two felt, had it been Will, Sarah or Annabelle in Roxie's position he'd be fighting until his spark gave out to get them back to safety.

Will had a thoughtful look on his face, he was remembering back to when Tools had told Optimus and the others that Megatron had branded Roxie, Tools had even drawn the glyph in the sand. The Autobots, the triplets in particular had been furious beyond anything so far when everything started. One thing Will had come to learn about the Cybertronian race was that something they did that was something the humans did could be the complete opposite in meaning. "Ironhide, what is the significance of Megatron branding that glyph on Roxie?"

Ironhide knew one of them was going to ask, he just wished they had asked Optimus. Venting a sigh he braced himself for what he was going to answer," On Cybetron there are three reasons for branding. Claiming land, drones and minicons were the two most common."

"And the third?" Epps had to push Ironhide on, Will hadn't blinked and his knuckles were going white on the steering wheel.

"It has not been done in centuries, but the third reason for branding another Cybertronian was for proprietor adoption."

"Then that glyph…" Will's voice was a restrained whisper.

"Translated the glyph that Megatron had branded on Roxie's back means slave daughter."

* * *

**GG23: ANNOUNCEMENTS!**

**1) LYNXBYLYNX HAS COME OUT WITH A NEW AWESOME FANFIC CALLED 'SPARK BONDAGE!' IT IS INTENSE! YES IT DOES NEED ALL CAPS! PLEASE GIVE IT A LITTLE LOOKY.**

**2) There is a link to a new fanart for the previous chapter on my profile lovelies!**

**3) Need opinions and help! I barely know what I'm doing with fraggn MEGATRON! Pointers to make him more accurate are needed please!**

**4) To any newish readers Ironaft30 and myself have been writing a co-op fanfic that is self insert called 'Bridge to Nowhere.' It would be awesome if we could get some more opinions on it! Thanks!  
**


	28. Screw It

**J: SORRY! That was a long leave with no update! It wasn't intentional, a stupid writer's block named Megatron invaded my brain and refused to let me figure out where to go next. I defeated him this morning and got this finished in ink on the bus ride home :D Again, sorry for any scares of it never being updated! IT WILL BE ONE OF MY FINISHED WORKS!**

**THANKS TO:**

**LynxbyLynx: **Your reaction worries me for what kind of relationships you'll have xD

**Teddy-Wabbitz: **Would be hysterical if it was a collar like the one Inuyasha wears "snickers."

**DarkHunter643: **Good, I really thought I was leaning to the OOC -.-

**Tailsdoll123: **Those are nightmares that Roxie will never tell anyone about :P

**Hedgi: **Heh, you'd think by reading my work long enough you could figure out what's coming next xD

**Supergirlprime: **The answer to your question is very complicated and shall be drawn out through chapters because I'm evil lol.

**Dontgotaclue88: **When I got the idea I stopped and asked myself if I was really going to go with it...Then decided it was too awesome not to use!

**Standout4Christ: **That's one of my all time favorite movies. The joke was probably an unintentional reflection of that love lol. "DIE DEMON BIRD!" I love his attempt at joining the tribal dance xD

**Ironhide and Lennox: **Depending on what books they were I will forgive you :P Just kidding, it's totally fine, you reviewed and that's all that matters :3

**Latina Shewolf: **Thank you for mentioning that bit, I was worried no one would comment on my deep Megatron thoughts there. "Hugs."

**Londongirl007: **Excellent! The more reassurance I get the better I feel.

**AutobotSyds643: **She's all hot air though, once she runs out she's royally screwed and kicks herself for it xD

**DemontaDark: **That is an excellent reaction! XD Made my day reading that review.

**KingofJesters: **Where's the fun in an immediate rescue? :P

**ChocoKoko: **"Nods."

**Jazzi Flynn: **Yup, remember, it took two burns to get the glyph just right to say that.

**DISCLAIMER: HASBRO OWNS TRANSFORMERS. TOOLS BELONGS TO IRONAFT30. ROXANNE, BETH, AND ALICE BELONG TO ME.**

* * *

_**Chapter Twenty Five - Screw It.**_

Tools lay on his bed staring up at the ceiling, it had been close to two hours since Will had left telling him to stay in the hospital. The guard outside his door hadn't budged an inch, _'Will must have given him some story that the mission relied on me staying out of the way to be successful.'_

Roxie's apologetic smile before surrendering her freedom, Roxie not able to meet his eyes as he was taken from her flashed through his mind. He needed to save her, he wouldn't feel at ease unless he saw Roxie himself safe and unharmed. He could help that happen even with a few cracked ribs, the burns barely registered in his mind. If he was going to join the others in the rescue mission he was going to need help. Pushing himself to sit up Tools looked around the room. Hs eyes fell on his boots and the tiny device laid next to them off to the side. He'd forgotten about his communicator when it had proven worthless with the Decepticons, away from their jamming signals it would work perfectly. He'd just need to fiddle with it a bit first.

Jolt lay motionless on the rough examination table glaring at the ceiling. The Decepticons had made his body immobile, Ratchet had fixed it so almost everything could move again, only to then put him in stasis to prevent him from joining the rescue mission for HIS ward. "I should have gone with them."

"So you can get blown to bits because your wounds slowed you down? Oh yes, that would be an excellent diversion tactic. Keep whining and I'll weld your lip plates together." Ratchet deliberately jostled a damaged wire to show how much he enjoyed listening to Jolt's complaints.

'_Once Roxanne is safe I need to do something to him.' _Plans for pay back went through Jolt's processor, each with a more satisfying result then the last, especially the ones where he could pin it on someone else. _**'Jolt sssss…Can you hear me Jolt?' **_Jolt's optics glanced over to see if Ratchet had heard the staticy voice belonging to Tools. His back was turned preparing another tool to take care of some of his minor wiring damage.

'_**I can hear you. What do you want?' **_Jolt imagined that Tools was hiding in the hospital bathroom or a closet so as not to be heard by anyone else. If he started whining about being stuck in the hospital he was going to cut the connection.

'_**Sss…What's your condition and location?' **_Even with the static created from distance or communicator problems Jolt could hear the all serious tone to Tools' voice.

'_**I was brought to the local base. Ratchet's got my systems stabilized but I'm stuck in stasis.' **_Jolt had a nagging feeling about where the questions were leading to a decision the human would make that Jolt will gladly go along with. Ratchet turned back around to work on the wiring in Jolt's arm, when it'd been dislocated a few necessary wires came loose.

Three minutes passed with Jolt hearing only Ratchet's complaints and curses to the Decepticons. _**'I'm on my way…If you're up to it. I'll get you out of your…Hatchy situation.' **_If Jolt had the ability to move Jolt would have copied a human mannerism and slapped himself on the face. Tools clearly needed his head scanned if he was making horrible puns like that. Jolt recorded it to play back to the twins so they could handle their friend.

'_**Just get here. The address is ? ? If you can do something about Ratchet AND get me out of stasis I will post pone the cruel torture I owe you for the glue, marshmallows and insects.' **_Post pone meaning he would wait until after he got Ratchet to go after Tools and the twins.

'_**Ssss…Sounds good to me. Will get there ASAP.' **_Jolt could hear traffic and people talking in the background, Tools had already gotten out of the hospital.

Getting dressed had taken a lot of control not to curse from the burns Scalpel had given him. He'd read his charts and saw that the nurse was scheduled to give him some pain medication in ten minutes, if it weren't for the likely hood of the meds knocking him out he would have stuck around long enough to take them.

Taking out the door guard had been sadly easy. He just called out a few times to get him inside, and asked him if he would give him updated on the rescue mission. Since citizens weren't suppose to know about the Cybertronians the guard had closed the door letting Tools have a small window of opportunity to knock him out with a good punch to the temple. Tools had taken the guard's weapons and bullet proof vest. After that he got out of the hospital simply by slipping in the back of clusters of doctors and nurses until got to the door.

Tools berated himself for not stealing some of the guard's cash for a taxi and sighed when he realized he would have to act for one. Tools flagged a taxi to the curb (with much restraint from wincing since raising his arm somehow affected his ribs) when it pulled over he took out his wallet and showed his N.E.S.T badge. "Sir, I'm in the middle of an emergency. I need you to drive me to ? ? For payment call this number and tell them to charge it to Gregory Harper." The taxi driver was clearly disbelieving at first but caught sight of Tools' burns briefly on his wrists and must have figured that it was better to cooperate with the guy carrying guns.

Tools didn't urge him to go faster in case it looked too suspicious, thankfully the taxi driver didn't try to initiate conversation either. When they pulled up to the corner of ? ? Tools could see the base Jolt had told him about. Tools made sure to memorize the driver's name just in case the guy tried to super overcharge the cab fare.

Getting into the building was nice and easy since most of the soldiers had joined the rescue mission. He followed the sounds of Ratchet's grumpy voice cursing at Jolt in Cybertronian. _'Oh how I wish I knew what they were saying.' _Tools crept along until he got to the corner he'd need to turn to see Jolt and Ratchet. Peeking around it he saw Jolt flat on his back rolling his optics at whatever Ratchet had said, only to get a wrench tap on the helm. Tools went over his options on how to deal with Ratchet and sighed when figuring out the best option.

Acting natural Tools walked around the corner with a smile," Hey Ratchet, how goes Jolt's recovery?"

Ratchet spun around with a momentary slack jaw, planting his hands on his hips Ratchet demanded," What in the Pit are you doing out of the hospital Gregory Harper?"

Tools kept walking forward," I left the hospital to tell you I'm sorry and I hope you can forgive me, but I know you won't." This said Tools ran around behind Ratchet and jumped onto the back of his legs.

"TOOLS! GET OFF ME THIS INSTANT!" Ratchet could only yell and partially turn in fear that if he made any large movements his plating would pinch Tools' fingers clean off his hands.

Jolt watched as Tools climbed up to Ratchet's head and reached under his neck plating to pull out a small wire. Ratchet went still then fell right over, face first to kiss the stone floor. Getting off of his body Tools turned to Jolt," I not only lost three trust points but I'm pretty sure Ratchet will find a way to throw a wrench at me and not give me brain damage."

"He was just ranting about that very topic when you showed up. It was between you and Roxanne for test subjects." Jolt wasn't really in the best position to be messing with the only person around that could get him moving again, but the set up was too good to pass up.

Tools paused in is movements to get up on the berth, he looked up at Jolt to tell if he was joking or not. Nothing on Jolt's face told the truth, keeping it in mind for another time to worry about Tools pulled himself up," If we're going to go anywhere you're going to have to tell me how to get you out of stasis."

"Look around my neck plating for two thick black wires. They need to be plugged into the two ports just under my left chin plate." Tools followed Jolt's instructions carefully so he didn't undo any of Ratchet's repairs.

Tools winced when plugging the wires in since they required some force before he heard them 'click' into place. Jolt's whole body groaned with the electrical current returned to all his functions. Vocalizing a groan to mirror his body Jolt got himself to sit up. "Alright, I'm fully functional with some minor tweaking needed still. You don't look properly armed to face Megatron and his lot."

"I'm aware of that, I was going to head to the armoury after getting your sorry ft out of stasis. But before I run there now I need you to make a call for me back to the Diego base." Tools jumped off the table and went for some paper and a pen laying on a human table. Writing big and overlapping to make the letters thick Tools wrote out who and what Jolt needed to call about.

He slapped it on top of Ratchet's chest for Jolt to read then left to load up on weapons for the hopeful final show down. Jolt stepped towards Ratchet and zoomed in on the note. Seeing the people he was suppose to call Jolt glared after Tools," Of all the humans…"

**-Diego Base-**

"Private Sanders, Private Bones. You're wanted at the communications bridge ASAP." A runner from the communications bridge had barged into the kitchen where Beth and Alice were cleaning pots. At the abrupt summons they exchanged raised eyebrows but dropped what they were doing to follow orders.

Beth and Alice got to the bridge to find Sam, Mikeala, Maggie, Glenn and Leo waiting with intent stares at one of the computers. The two soldiers pushed into the group," Private Beth Sanders and Private Alice Bones reporting."

"About time. Listen up I'm only reading this scrap of a note once. You are to go into Gregory Harper's work room and locate a device that resembles half a sphere with little lights surrounding the rim. When you find it you are to deliver it to these coordinates….. Come prepared to fight some Cons." The line went dead leaving Beth with a gruesome excited smile and Alice looking a bit pale. Neither girl had taken part in a Con battle but they'd both been trained for it.

Turning to the group of surrounding teens Beth asked," Anyone want to help dig through Tools' crap to find his precious thingamajig?"

Finally able to do something to help their friends the group ran off the bridge for Tools' work room. Alice was trailing far behind walking rigidly. Leo noticed the absence of one of their pretty girls and back tracked. Seeing her jerky movements he took her hand," Hey Chika, look at me."

She raised her eyes to his," Scared right?" She nodded. "Good, that means you're beautiful, strong, and normal. Don't worry about fighting the Cons until you get to the battle field. If a computer junkie like me with no training can live through it, then you have a much better chance that I did. Let's go find whatever the hell Tools wants." Alice gave a curt nod and ran along with Leo, a small smile touching the corner of her mouth with her eyes focused on Leo holding her hand still.

* * *

**J: Thought a bit of random pairing fluff there might be a random little snack for you guys xD Some bit of news and such!**

1) Please give LynxbyLynx' fanfiction 'Spark Bondage' a look over. It's really interesting since it's a mix of Altverse and different perspectives for characters.

2) There is plenty of fan art for this fanfiction posted up on my profile for all you lovely readers to give a looksie!

3) To all you new people who have added this to your favorites or watch THANK YOU! Would love to know your thoughts and opinions on it!

4) Would you guys be interested in getting more background on Alice and Beth?


	29. In Motion

**J: I don't know how but I somehow have developed a certain page count for each chapter, and I honestly don't like it. The chapters are too short but if I try writing more than what should be there it feels horrible -.- Oh well, at least there's enough for you to read right? I AM OVER 300 REVIEWS! BEST REVIEW RECORD EVAH! **

**THANK YOU:**

**Katie Gibbs: **Heh, almost! Next chapter I PROMISE!

**LynxbyLynx: **Thank you for staying up to read that last chapter update, you know I'd do the same :D And yes, more or less, but that's something that will pop up another time ;3

**Ironaft30: **The wrench of doom will find him! Ratchet will make sure of it!

**Darkhunter643: **Ah, an excellent name change at that :3

**ChocoKoko: **You are the second to ask, and there have been others so it is likely to happen in a one shot.

**Supergirlprime: **Sorry about the scare, with all the time and ideas I've invested in this I'm making sure to see it through until the end.

**Dontgotaclue88: **It was a super random idea I slapped on at the end since I have another idea for a one shot involving them :3

**AutobotSyds643: **Huh, just noticed that there are now two people with the same number ending...Not going to ask, just mentioning. And Jolt and Tools won't see the wrench of doom coming until the last second either xD

**xX Ironhide's Femme Erin Xx: (X5) **Because there are too many reviews to respond to individually I will just say THANKS lol.

**Latina Shewolf: **For some strange reason I got your review twice because the first one was incomplete and then it was sent again in full xD I'm really touched with your reviews, I mean I feel like I'm making such copy paste characters here! With Jolt I'm just pulling crap out of a hat! And Alice and Beth shall be properly introduced since there was a decent number of you that said YES.

**DISCLAIMER: HASBRO OWNS TRANSFORMERS. IRONAFT30 OWNS TOOLS. ROXANNE GLITCH BELONGS TO ME.  
**

* * *

**Chapter Twenty Six - In Motion**

The Decepticons had spent another ten minutes teasing Roxanne about the collar, only in Cybertronian. She didn't understand them but didn't need to to know that they were teasing her, it was all in their tone. They'd stopped when she lost her temper, got off the armrest to plant a hand on her hips and point to each one to tell Megatron," Off duty Cyclonus does aerial ballet. Demolisher plots to humiliate and kill Starscream. Starscream plots to kill you…Again. And Thrust…..EWWW! KILL HIM! I BEG OF YOU TO KILL HIM!" This caught them all off guard. No one but Cyclonus remembered what she'd said about him, all optics turned on Thrust with a raise optic ridge. The strategist had turned his optics on Roxie with a death glare as she glared right back at him.

"What did you hear that would warrant the death penalty?" Megatron wouldn't kill Thrust without at least a semi-decent reason. It had been centuries since the mech had produced a winning strategy for him, so it wouldn't be any metal off his back to rip the cone headed disaster to pieces.

Roxie's back was burning fiercely from her movements and yelling fit, she didn't show it because she was to repulsed by what she'd heard from Thrust's spark to stop glaring," I'll vomit if I try to repeat it." The mixture of pain and repulsion was indeed making her stomach churn, the last thing she needed was to throw up the remainder of the trail mix bars and water she'd consumed hours before, or had a day passed? She didn't know and tried not to think about it.

After the loud reaction Megatron didn't doubt that she would regurgitate her stomach contents so didn't push it, he hated organic remnants. "Thrust, is there anything on your processor you're willing to share? Or do I need to persuade you in private?" Roxie liked the sounds of Megatron's persuasion, it would serve the raping afthole right for his disgusting thoughts.

Thrust finally broke off his glare on the female organic," I was just thinking that I do not care very much for the human's large mouth."

The wording and uneasy voice gave away the already obvious lie, Roxie rolled her eyes and laid down on her back. She hissed loudly from the initial increase in pain but only that, the cool metal of the armrest got through the fabric of Tools' shirt to ease the burn just enough for Roxie to feel it. Megatron had watched her movements right up until she closed her eyes. Her breathing slowed and Megatron was pleased she'd fallen asleep, her body needed to adjust to his claim upon her back as well as the heightened hearing. He was also finding her comments and tone grating on his nerves. His optics turned back to Thrust, in Cybertronian he told him in a low growl," I'm in a good mood Thrust, so I will give you one more chance. What were you thinking that disturbed Roxanne enough to kill you?"

Thrust was slagged. If he lied he would be decapitated, if he told the truth Megatron would deactivate him piece by piece. He chose a quick death," I was thinking of killing her by stepping on her Lord Megatron."

Megatron lunged forward and grabbed Thrust by the throat, the other Decepticons watched with smug smiles as Megatron dragged the strategist to a different part of the base for interrogation then elimination. Once they were out of the room Cyclonus cackled," About time that cone head was off-lined. Wish I could watch."

"What do you think he was really thinking?" Demolisher was happy to see Thrust destroyed as well, though he was very curious what Thrust had been thinking that disturbed the fleshling.

"I don't care, and neither should you. Our main concern should be the human. She is a threat that Megatron can hold over our heads until she expires." Starscream looked down at Roxanne with disdain. The Decepticons were meant to strike fear in the souls of all who oppose them and one day that would be everyone in the universe. The girl should not be able to sleep so peacefully in their presence. Her very existence was a constant insult and danger. It repulsed Starscream that their leader would brand her as a 'daughter' instead of just leaving it at 'slave.' If he was commanding the Decepticon forces he would keep her in a cage with no possibility of mouthing back to him. She would tremble and beg for her life when he came near her. And the two that had been released would be dead or experimented on once all information about the Autobots had been extracted. Things would be so much different if he were the ruler of the Decepticons.

Starscream had unknowingly stepped closer towards Megatron's throne with his optics locked onto Roxanne. All of he things he'd just thought were heard by Roxie, she would never say it out loud but she was grateful it was Megatron she'd made the deal with.

Roxie wasn't actually asleep, she just didn't want Megatron to bother her anymore. She didn't know if he would leave her alone by going to sleep and was happy that it had worked. The Decepticons were talking in their native language leaving her to pick up snippets from their sparks. After Starscream's little mind rant about being head honcho Cyclonus and Demolisher were carrying words such as _'human', 'threat', 'secrets' , 'kill.' _'_Why me? Seriously! I would love an answer as to why I'm being condemned to the worst possible fates. Dad, if you can hear these thoughts up in heaven, DO SOMETHING!' _Her prayers were answered by Demolisher's wrist blinking a little red light and beeping shrilly.

"What's that alarm Demolisher?" Cyclonus leaned close and stretched out a finger to poke it. Demolisher swatted him away and pushed a button here and there.

He didn't answer Cyclonus' question and took off to find Megatron. Cyclonus followed after him to hear what was going on since it looked like it would be something exciting. This left Starscream alone with Roxanne. "You can stop your performance of recharge fleshling. I have an offer for you."

"Sorry but I only make one deal with giant harbingers of death a day. And your offer will only lead to me dying, no thank you." Roxie had opened her eyes but didn't move and settled for staring at the ceiling. The growl Starscream made at her display of disrespect towards him did little to scare her, Megatron's had more promise of pain behind it.

"There is indeed a 75 percent chance of being off-lined. The 25 percent chance of your survival ensures your freedom girl. All you need to do is tell me the secrets of Megatron's spark." Starscream kept his tone civil, he knew Earthlings didn't respond well to negative reinforcement, females in particular seemed to respond ten times worse.

Still staring at the ceiling Roxie started making hand gestures with her words to keep the Dorritocon's attention," Did you hack into my school records and saw that my worst subject was math? Because those numbers just convinced me less. Yes, I would love to get as far away from Megatron and you as possible, as well as be rid of this collar. Yet I will choose my life of slavery over death. Do you know why?" Starscream didn't ask or give an answer so Roxie continued," I'd rather live as a slave then be dead because sooner or later I will find my own way to get free, and that way will probably keep me alive. If you're done trying to convince me could you please depart? I enjoyed my pretend sleep." Roxie closed her eyes and inwardly smiled when Starscream drove his fist into the nearest wall and stormed off to make a new plot.

Finally alone Roxie could start putting her own plan for freedom into action. Roxie let her attention focus on her hearing for the first time since the horrible collar had been forced on her. Without the Decepticons around she found it wasn't too bad, she could hear where the Cons were gathered but not what they were saying. She kept an ear on them to make sure they didn't return and catch her off guard. Roxie felt kind of like a satellite doing a sweep for signals or waves of information. _'THERE! That lone little frequency, that has to be the thing jamming signal outputs. Now how to get to it.' _Her plan had sounded simple when she first came up with it, but she didn't take into account her current location or the agony she would endure from her back. Approaching foot steps and the increase of a single spark hum she recognized as Megatron's put her thinking on pause and take up the appearance of false sleep once more.

Megatron entered the room, his glowing optics and sneer indications of his building rage. He approached his metal throne and looked down at his sleeping gift. Her features were unmoved, she was in a peaceful state. In turn this pleased Megatron, he believed it was a sign that she was already becoming accustomed to his presence. He wanted that, he wanted her to act as her normal self when she was around him. He recalled the times when she was a sparkling and would be perfectly content sitting on his shoulder or talking to him. He had been thoroughly amused when she had stubbed her foot on his own, kicked him yelling, only to hurt herself more. At first he had wished to flatten her and her mech creator for treating him like a source of entertainment. As time went on he began to rely on the human girl's voice and questions, they kept his processor off the fact that he was trapped in frozen shackles. Thinking on this revelation Megatron chuckled, it came out sounding deranged due to his anger. He chuckled because it made sense. Primus had kept him frozen so he could learn to tolerate the gift he would be given, Megatron was certain that without those years of enduring her chatter and ranting he would have killed her the second she began to talk back without respect. It had all played out according to Primus' plans, Roxanne Glitch rightfully belonged to him.

Roxie heard over and over two words from Megatron's spark, '_mine' _and _'gift.' _Seeing as it was just her in the room with him she guessed these words were directed towards her, _'Guess I'm not even a sentient being anymore if I've become an object….I'm going to enjoy hearing about the beating his men will get when I escape.' _

Megatron sat down on his throne and carefully picked Roxanne up off of the armrest. He'd made contact with his brand causing her to whimper and open her eyes. She didn't say anything, only looked up at him with a raised eyebrow. "What do you think of the Autobot leader Optimus Prime?"

"Uh…Well…He's kind of okay. Not the kind of bot I can see myself becoming best friends with though." Roxie hadn't expected a question like this, leaving her to pull the answer pretty much of out no where.

"Good. Prime and the rest of the pathetic Autobots are on their way to be slaughtered." Roxie sat upright wide eyed. This was both good and bad news. Good since they knew where she was meaning they must have found Tools and Jolt. Bad because one of the other Autobots might be killed. She wouldn't doubt that the triplets would try and find her instead of watching for enemy fire. Ironhide might be brought down by his past knee injury. All different scenarios of what could go wrong cycled through Roxie's mind. She also had to worry about Will, Epps and Uncle Simian. Roxie felt like a three year old with the question," Do you have to fight them?" Sitting on the tip of her tongue. Megatron watched all the various emotions of shock, happiness, worry, fear and finally determination settle on Roxanne's face. She wouldn't tell him anything in regards to her thoughts, and that was fine with him. Megatron could handle anything the human girl could think of.

Cyclonus pranced into the room," Lord Megatron. They've gotten really close, can I go kill a few of the humans?"

"Only if you want to be killed. You would be such an easy target you idiot. You are to wait with the others until I give orders." Cyclonus nodded and went back to his post to sulk.

Throughout the time that Megatron had told Cyclonus off Megatron had flattened Roxie under his hand after Cyclonus had asked about killing humans. She'd just about started yelling insults and he wouldn't have any of that. He lifted his hand and found Roxanne glaring up at him in anger and pain. "Until the Autobots and any humans with them are destroyed you will remain silent and by my side at all times. One word out of you and I shall reinforce my claim upon your back by cutting along the lines." Megatron wasn't using a bluff to scare her into obedience, it was an actual threat. Roxie was positive her sanity wouldn't last through that extra amount of pain. Cursing him a thousand times over in her mind she nodded.

"Good. Come along then." Megatron scooped Roxie up in his hand and dropped her on his shoulder. She hadn't expected this treatment and didn't disapprove of it either. Being carried in a clutched hand hurt, riding on his shoulder allowed her to lay on her stomach or sit, and pay better attention to what corners they turned. As Megatron stood up she held on tight and even told herself to think of it as a ride at the amusement park. The first few steps nearly dislodged her from her spot, she readjusted her grip and found what kept her in place. From there the ride was deemed quite pleasant because of the rhythm. As her body relaxed her mind got to work making tweaks to her plan to deactivate the thing that was jamming any signals and broadcasts.

* * *

**J: Primus am I tired, what time is it "checks time" 11:47pm...Meh late enough xD But I shall keep to my pattern with shoutouts!**

1) Upon request Supergirlprime has asked that I give a little word about her fanfiction. I've given it a look over and I have seen potential, please give it a read or glance over yourselves and let her know what you guys think :)

2) For those of you that read 'Bridge to Nowhere' it is still alive, it's just me taking my sweet aft time editing xD

3) If you guys have a fanfiction you're working on that you want advertised just let me know via review. I need to read it myself first though of course ;D

4) I will give you guys more info on Beth and Alice, but first I need to know if I should just randomly throw out their two-shot ASAP or wait until I finish Babysitter. I make most of my decisions from you guys!


	30. MY BAD

**MY BAD!**

**Hey everyone! If you got an update link for the latest update and the link doesn't work that is because I wasn't very intelligent. I added the chapter and then deleted the two news update things, thus moving the new chapter to be number 29. So reviews won't work if you gave one for chapters 29 and 30. I'm sorry about all this. **

**GlitchGirl23**

**P.S. If you really want to review I do not have the anonymous reviewing blocked, so try that method or personal message your review. Just a suggestion. SORRY!**


	31. Forces Meet

**J: First let me once more apologize for my epic failing when updating last time. Secondly I am going to just say that I am NOT impressed with the website update, I mean, it was excellent the way it was! Well complaining about it isn't going to change anything so whatever. To make up for my previous short chapters and for my screw up last chapter here is a juicy new chapter for you guys :)**

**THANKS TO:**

**Ironaft30: **(Nods) Thank you brother!

**Keacdragon: **No need to beg, I intend to see this all the way to the end and will do what I can to update when I can :3

**Latina Shewolf: **Thank you :D That is more or less where I was getting with Megatron, it is so nice to know my readers are picking up on it. Hope this chapter continues to do the characters justice.

**J: Yea, that's all the reviews I got, and I do not blame you guys. I totally deserve it. Hope this chapter makes up for it!**

**DISCLAIMER: DO NOT OWN TRANSFORMERS. TOOLS BELONGS TO IRONAFT30. ROXANNE BELONGS TO ME.**

CLARIFICATION: normal talking, _thinking, _**_talking over the comm. links._  
**

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**Chapter Twenty Seven - Forces Meet**

"I'm going to have to apologize to Prime and Roxanne later." Ironhide's mutterings took Epps and Will out of their thoughts and raise an eyebrow at the radio.

Ironhide saying he'd need to apologize to Roxie as well as Optimus clued Will into what must have happened. Pinching the bridge of his nose Will growled," Who has dibs first, you or Ratchet?"

This helped Epps figure it out," Tools and Jolt are on their way to join us, aren't they?" Will nodded. "Fraggin kid. If he gets killed I'm going to bring him back to life to kick his aft all the way to Cybertron."

"If he doesn't get killed I'll hold him down just so you can do that. How far are they from us?" Will was non too impressed with his leading field scout. He had been ordered to stay at the hospital. For disobeying orders Will could demote or even eject Tools from the N.E.S.T team. He wouldn't be that cruel but he would have to keep an eye out for future incidents such as these. A soldier that couldn't follow orders wasn't a soldier that could keep the ranks functional. If he couldn't talk sense into Tools once all this was over then he could always give Sarah a call, unless Roxie gave him an earful.

Ironhide located Jolt's fast approaching signal, Ratchet wasn't too far behind them. "My calculations estimate they will reach the end of the convoy in 17.3 minutes…Optimus says the Decepticon base is in sight. " Epps and Will rolled down their windows and took out their binoculars. Looking ahead in the direction they were going they could make out a large metal rectangle that was in fact the bunker they had located on the map. From their perspective they couldn't see how huge alien robots could fit into the structure, as they got closer they found that it stretched further in height.

Pulling back into the cab Will ran a hand through his hair, the closer they got to the bunker the closer they got to a battle that would likely cause casualties. It also brought them closer to the poor girl that deserved a chance at life rather than waste away in the hands of the enemy. He sent a prayer to God and Primus to protect their men and let them get Roxie back in one piece. He wouldn't be able to face Annabelle or Sarah otherwise.

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Megatron entered a room that had once sheltered tanks and gave entrance to soldiers and scientists alike. At present it was cluttered with parts of tanks, machinery and a recently off-lined Thrust. From her perch on Megatron's shoulder Roxie shivered seeing the once very disturbing mech limbless with lightless optics. She didn't know if it was her imagination or the collar's ear buds enhancing her hearing but a hollow haunting voice repeating itself came from what remained of Thrust's spark, _' Die human femme.' _Tearing her eyes away from the Cybertronian corpse she looked at the waiting Decepticons. Starscream, Demolisher, Cyclonus and Megatron were all that were present to represent their faction. Roxie assumed that all the Autobots, minus Jolt and Ratchet (just an assumption she had) were on their way. Add on the human forces and the Decepticons didn't have a chance in a head on fight.

For a reason she didn't know or mind at all they decided to talk in English," Has SoundWave been notified?"

"Yes Lord Megatron. Reinforcements are entering Earth's atmosphere as we speak." Starscream took pleasure in having given SoundWave the orders to send troops to their aid. SoundWave usually only took orders from Megatron, but the loyal communications officer had given no resistance and got to work summoning the forces.

"Excellent. Demolisher how much time until our uninvited guests will be knocking on the door?" Megatron was perfectly aware that Roxie was hearing everything they said. There was no problem with that since she had no way to communicate with Optimus and the others. He planned to keep Roxanne with him at all times, so she would have to get used to hearing them talk about destroying other humans and Cybertronians.

"They will be within range of the signal disruptor in 10 minutes. How are we going to proceed Lord Megatron?" Demolisher gave his report with his optics flicking to Roxie. Since Cyclonus had seen her on Megatron's shoulder he was continuously rambling and snickering over a private comm line about how much of squishy pet she was becoming. As well as wondering what it felt like to have a squishy lay on him. It then turned over to him thinking about getting a squishy pet of his own. At that point Demolisher cut the comm link off and put his full attention on Megatron. "Cyclonus you will go out and wait for them. Once they've entered the dead zone see if you can't lure some of them away from the base. The rest of us will be waiting for whoever decides to come in."

'_Crap! Things are going to happen too fast. I have to get to that signal disruptor. How? Oh wait! I'm human!' _Throwing dignity and being tough out the proverbial window Roxie let out a little cough to get Megatron's attention. He'd told her to be quiet for the next little while so she made sure to look sheepish when he turned annoyed red optics on her. "Forgive me Lord Megatron but…I am only human, and I need to relieve myself." Add flushed cheeks (saying 'relieve' felt more embarrassing than saying she needed to pee) and she gave the perfect 'little girl needs to go potty' appearance.

Megatron's ego was nicely stroked by his property addressing him as Lord. Hearing it from Roxanne was refreshing and inspiring to his goal to one day conquer Earth and the universe. To hear every sentient being call him Lord or Master was a dream he would achieve. "Very well Roxanne. You will find the facilities you need in the room furthest to the right. And remember, I will always know where you are." Megatron plucked Roxie off his shoulder and placed her on the floor. He watched her run out of the room and internally followed her movements with the collar.

A shiver touched Roxie's neck right under the collar. She didn't give it much attention, she didn't have time to worry about little things. She needed to find the signal disruptor and turn it off, possibly even dismantle it if Megatron wasn't aware of what she was actually doing.

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"Remind me why you fixed Ratchet before we left?" There was a touch of strain in Jolt's voice, his engines were beginning to overheat from the extended period of full throttle driving. Add on the other minor discomfort's he was experiencing from the damaged sections Ratchet didn't get to and it all added up to a growing full body ache.

Tools was in a similar situation, the off road driving continuously jostled his injured ribs and his burns were beginning to itch and sting. He glanced in the read view mirror to see that Ratchet had gained some more ground. Shifting in his seat to be a bit more comfortable Tools sighed," We both know Ratchet will be useful for the oncoming battle. Or would you rather deal with a raging Ratchet when more than one bot gets really hurt? Since we're this close to the Decepticons base it's unlikely he'll try and take us down now." Ahead of them the other Autobots were beginning to break off into a formation Tools had been trained to recognize as an offensive formation. They were getting ready to attack the base from as many directions as necessary to try and draw out the enemy. They just had to hope that the enemy leaves Roxie in the base for them to retrieve and take her away from the danger.

"You don't know Ratchet very well then. The Ratchet I know is going to offline us, resurrect us, then make sure we can't participate in the rescue mission. I'm keeping distance between me and Ratchet for the next millennium. You are more than welcome to endure the pain he'll give you again and again." Tools wanted to roll his eyes at Jolt's dramatic warnings about Ratchet but didn't since Jolt sounded so serious about it he didn't think he would survive the rest of the ride.

Movement from the right drew Tool's attention to the sky. Forgetting his ribs for a moment he went to window faster than good for his condition and rolled down the window. With his hand shadowing his eyes as he squinted Jolt just about swerved off course when Tools yelled," FRAGGIT!"

"What's got you cursing?" Jolt and all the other Autobots were within the radius of the signal disruptor and he couldn't swivel his head around to take in the surroundings.

Ducking back in Tools activated his ear comm. The signal disruptor's functions were to prevent signals going in and out of the range it permitted. It luckily couldn't stop communications between beings if both are within the radius. "Lennox, we've got more company en route due East. I thought most of them got destroyed in Egypt?"

"_**We did get most of them! These guys probably didn't get invited to Egypt." **_Despite Will's volume nearly bursting Tools' ear drum Tools didn't remove his comm device. If he missed instructions he wasn't allowed to ask for a repeat.

Changing his gaze between the crash landing Decepticons and fast approaching base Tools was about to give himself whip lash. "Sir I've got Privates Bones and Sanders air dropping close by to deliver a new device. How do you want to proceed?"

"_**Fraggit Tools! I can get you deported from the N.E.S.T team for giving orders like that! Whatever this device is better be worth your job. For now you and Jolt will watch and join up with Privates Bones and Sanders when they arrive. You'll get further instructions then." **_Will sounded ready to stomp on Tools' rib cage to make sure he stayed in the hospital permanently.

Blowing out some air (and wincing from his ribs) Tools chose to watch the arriving Decepticons and let Jolt pay attention to everything else. "What does this new device do Tools?"

"It'll help us get to Roxie without losing limbs." The flaming meteors that were Decepticons crashed into the sand with a piercing 'THUD' upon impact. Tools counted twenty new enemies to fight. Making that twenty five hurdles for him and Jolt to jump over to reach Roxanne.

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"That idiot is going on latrine duty for months." Will grumbled this while checking to make sure that his gun was set and loaded.

When Tools had told him of the approaching Decepticons Ironhide made sure to inform the other Autobots as well, though it wasn't necessary since the falling enemies entered the radius and emitted a signal they could all detect._** 'Ironhide to Ratchet.'**_

'_**What? I'm busy trying to catch a couple of glitch heads right now.' **_Ironhide inwardly rolled his optics. The amount of trouble Tools and Jolt were in would take a year if not more to settle.

'_**What do you plan to do? Stick with the suicidal idiots or join assault?' **_While asking Ironhide made sure that Optimus was let in on the conversation.

'_**I'm sticking with Jolt and Tools. Their condition will be a great disadvantage if any Decepticons get to them. Once they are secure near other forces I will join Optimus.' **_Ratchet had paused before answering. Under normal circumstances he would do what he could to stay near Optimus and Ironhide.

'_**Alright, I will inform Major Lennox.' **_Ironhide closed the comm links and relayed this to Will as he said he would.

"And everyone else is taking a different angle of the base. Good. Just remember that we're here to save Roxie, not kill every last Decepticon. Once she's safe we retreat. This is Optimus' plan as well." Will felt these words were needed, he knew that the civil war between the Autobots and Decepticons had been practically ingrained into the processors of all those still fighting. If the Autobots won then they could return to Cybertron and do what they could to restore it.

Ironhide showed his acknowledgement by revving his engine a bit louder. In a voice that was uncharacteristically calm for Ironhide he warned Will," Yes I will remember the plan. You also need to remember that it is Megatron that has claimed Roxanne. Megatron will not let her go easily."

"Thanks for those encouraging words." Epps muttered this just loud enough for Will to hear.

Putting on a grim smile Will agreed. If Megatron told them they would have to pry Roxie from his cold dead finger then they would gladly do so.

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Roxie felt ready to curl up into a ball and take a nap. She'd run through the halls of the abandoned bunker with no idea where to go except with what she could hear. Leaning against a wall to catch her breathe she noticed a shoe mark in the dust. Observing it more closely she noticed a little star on the heel. Looking at the bottom of her own shoe she saw the same star. "No way! I've been running in circles! My own ears are betraying me! That's it! I'm doomed! I should just go back to Megatron and start purring like a kitten!" There was no one around to hear her dramatic yelling or see her arm flailing but that didn't stop her from doing it. She was tired, sore, hungry and in need of a hug. Roxie refused to go to Megatron for that hug.

Slumping down onto her butt she rested her forehead on her knees. Her dad once told her that it was something only her and her mom did in such a weird way that no one else could mimic the motions or final pose. Roxie took in a long breathe and let it back out. "Okay, I'm going to try one more time. If I can't find this blasted thing I'm just going to run for it." Getting to her feet took more effort then it should have, giving her an indication that her body was just about ready to shut down and rest for a while. When she got back to the base she was going to need maybe a day or two in bed.

Roxie followed her own foot steps until she got to a split in the hallway, her foot steps went straight so she took the turn. This lead her down a hallway with barely any light to see by, but the whine of the machine she was trying to find became louder. Finally on the right track she pushed her body into a sprint using the last of her energy.

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Megatron followed Roxanne's movements with growing agitation. He wasn't surprised that she had gone off to try and destroy the signal disruptor, his frustrations grew out of observation of the approaching Autobots. They were coming to take his gift away from him, they had no interest in simply chasing them off of Earth. It was the day of the his death all over again. The All Spark was rightfully his, he had been the one to follow it all the way to the stinking planet Earth. But no, Optimus Prime and the boy had taken it away.

Megatron would not allow that to happen again. Thus the need to brand Roxanne as his property, he had added family claim on for Roxanne's own sake. She had no femme or mech creator and would need proper guidance through the remainder of her short life span with him. Guidance seemed to be needed already, a sure sign that their time together in the future would be quite eventful.

His idiot men stood at the windows watching as the reinforcements gathered towards the battle field. Cyclonus had left to follow his orders to divert as many Autobots as possible, opening a comm link he changed his plans, _**'You are to retrieve Roxanne this instant and bring her back to me unharmed. You will find her in the chamber containing the signal disruptor.'**_

'_**Uh, yes sir. I'll have your squishy back in a jiffy! Hey! That kind of rhymed! Hahaha!' **_Cyclonus cut the link just as Megatron began to growl, though Cyclonus' laughter could still be heard not that far down the halls.

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"Any sign of them?" Tools asked for the fifth time in ten minutes. He was in the back with a pair of binoculars looking through one window then the next.

Jolt would love to do nothing more than slap the man. He understood that Tools was on edge, it wasn't like he didn't feel ready to punch someone as well. It was this shared feeling of jitters that kept Jolt from figuratively biting Tools' head off. "No, I don't see them anywhere. Tools, you have a higher IQ than most humans. You should know that the time it will take for them to get here from Diego Garcia will be more than an hour."

Tools sat back from the window, his face scrunched up in thought he twitched his fingers along with his calculations. "You're right, depending on how long it took them to find the device it would then take them five minutes to gear up, five minutes to get off land and then an hour and a half to get close to here. We have another 36.5 minutes or so before they get here. What do we do until then?" Having figured all this out Tools came to the end result that him and Jolt would have close to a half hour of just sitting on their afts. This he did not like.

An old saying that Tools had forgotten goes, 'Ask a question, get an answer.' The answer to Tools' question came in the form of another Decepticon meteor landing not too far away. Slamming on the brakes Jolt opened the door and let Tools out so he could transform. Glaring as the Decepticon rose to its feet Jolt told Tools," We can start with him."

The Con yelled an insult in Cybertronian that Jolt just brushed off. Feeling the snub the Decepticon got into motion running towards them. Jolt could only use one of his whips but that would be plenty, Tools was wielding a gun that he'd never used before and decided to give a try on the battle field. Neither of them got the chance to fight thanks to Ratchet transforming and shooting a saw blade right into the Decepticon's head. "You two will not be wasting your energy fighting pointless Cons."

Unintentionally both mech and human crossed their arms and grumbled," Dr. Kill Joy." This was a clear enough example for Ratchet to see that Roxanne had had an influence on the two hard heads.

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The Decepticons that had arrived received orders from Megatron, it was the only explanation Will could think of as to why they weren't attacking them. Instead the Cons had raced towards the bunker to put themselves between the Autobots and their leader.

Ironhide had found his position and let the soldiers exit before transforming to get a better look of their surroundings and pick out his target. A particularly large one standing just to his left looked promising. "Ironhide, can you see where Roxie is?"

"No, the signal disruptor the Cons are using make it hard to identify thermal readings. The heat reflecting off the sand is just making it worse." Will cursed squinted his eyes towards the bunker. He prayed that Roxie knew they were there and could somehow get away from Megatron. This hope was cut in half when he remembered that plenty of time had passed, any harm could have been done to her in that time frame.

Epps looked from one Con to the next voicing his thoughts," So they're just going to stand there and do nothing until we start shooting at them?….Can I start shooting at them now?"

"Not until everyone else is in position, THEN you can be like Ironhide and go trigger happy." Will allowed himself a small smile that lasted a second when Ironhide mumbled, " He could never keep up with me."

Optimus, Bumblebee, both sets of twins and finally the triplets gave their signal that they and their squadron of soldiers were in position. "Everyone is set. Once someone takes a shot -" 'BOOM!' Ironhide didn't let Will finish his sentence and took the first shot. His plasma bullet flew through the distance and connected with the left side of the large Decepticon's chest. Will and Epps watched the Decepticon blink, look down at the place where he used to have chest armour plating and a left arm and begin to scream. It wasn't a 'in agony' scream, it was a 'I'm going to kill you' battle scream. Ironhide's lip plates tilted into a pleased smirk and started firing off more shots.

The other Decepticons followed the example of the injured mech and began yelling battle cries. All at once they took off running towards the Autobots who went forward to meet the challenge.

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Cyclonus heard the chorused battle cry and sighed. Instead of being outside killing Autobots he was stuck as a fleshy sitter. "Stupid human is ruining my fun and I can't even do anything to her." Cyclonus turned the corner into the room where they kept the signal disruptor. He found Megatron's precious fleshy staring at the five foot tall machine.

Having heard Cyclonus' large foot steps Roxie had prepared herself to be snatched up by Megatron. Turning around to find Cyclonus frowning down at her brought a smile to her face. Cyclonus' frown changed to irritation," What are you so happy about squishy?"

"I'm just happy to see you Elton John lover." A quick evaluation of the machine had told Roxie that she alone wouldn't be able to destroy it. Cyclonus on the other hand was the perfect idiot for the job.

"You shut up about that! All your Earthling music sucks. And I don't do aerial ballet either!" Cyclonus took a step forward with a clenched fist.

'_Cyclonus you are making this far too easy for me.' _Putting her hands up Roxie teased," Hey I only mentioned your Elton John affections, I didn't say anything about the ballet. How is that new composition coming along by the way? What was it called? The Thousand Blades of Destiny?" Cyclonus' clenched fist began to shake and his teeth were grinding together.

He took another step forward," I said shut up! Say one more thing and I will kill you! I'll just tell Lord Megatron you committed suicide and ran under my foot."

"Say one more thing about what? About the time you took the glory for shooting out Ironhide's knee when it was actually Skywarp? Or the time you stole three of ThunderCracker's precious high grade?" Roxie stepped back towards the signal disruptor as Cyclonus started to growl and tremble in fury.

"That's it! You're dead squishy!" Megatron's threat forgotten Cyclonus brought his foot down to stomp on the annoying human. Instead of a satisfying squish and various sounds of breaking bones Cyclonus heard a loud crumple and crunch. Lifting his foot he found a smooshed signal disruptor and the annoying human laying on the floor a few feet to the right.

Sitting up Roxie grinned in victory at Cyclonus," Thanks Cyclonus! You've been a big help, and don't worry. No one will ever learn of those two little secrets. Now if you'll excuse me I'm going to find a way out of this dump." Her confidence at an all time high Roxie got up (winced a bit from her back) and began to walk pass Cyclonus.

Cyclonus regained himself right before Roxie could get out the door. Making a swift turn and swoop Cyclonus grabbed Roxie, " You're going back to Megatron squishy. And I'll tell him YOU broke the signal disruptor." For his own pleasure Cyclonus squeezed his hand around her body until she cried out in pain. He unclenched enough for her to breath then went on to bring her to Megatron.

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**J: Not that many announcements!**

1) Give LynxbyLynx's various fics a look over, I know you will enjoy!

2) There is plenty of fan art for this fanfiction, all the links can be found on my profile, please take a looksie!

3) I've decided that there will be a Beth and Alice one shot, but they won't come out until AFTER the story when I'm releasing all the other one shots! Sorry!

2) 


	32. Go Boom

**J: I know I know, you've waited for a while and all you get is this dinky 1,000 something chapter. I'm kinda sorry about that but look at it from my perspective. I had the plot figured out for Point A (Roxie getting captured) and never thought much further than that and only thought of Point B. Sooo these little chapters are me piecing together the right path from Point A to Point B. **

**THANKS TO: **

**Tailsdoll123: **Well thankfully it's just the little things that rubbed off on them...so far xD

**Keacdragon: **I don't like to see my readers beg unless I deliberately left them with a cliff hanger xD

**StandOut4Christ: **With all the fun poking I was trying to show how Cyclonus reeeally didn't deserve any credit he'd acquired heh. Sorry for that big delay between chapters -.-"

**Hedgi: **Yes, you have mentioned your love for her multiple times xD But I love to hear you keep saying it lol.

**Dontgotaclue88: **Thank you for your forgiveness :D And yay for getting the humour lol!

**LynxbyLynx: **Let's face it sis, he really had it coming :P

**Latina Shewolf: **Have I ever told you how much of a booster your reviews are? :3 Ever since that little mishap with the chapters moving around I lost some reviewers (pretty sure) and then there you are with your beautiful long explanations of what you liked :D If there is ever a one shot you want written (again lol) I will get on it immediately, this is how much I love your long reviews!

**DISCLAIMER: HASBRO OWNS TRANSFORMERS. TOOLS BELONGS TO IRONAFT30. ROXANNE BELONGS TO ME.**

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**Chapter Twenty Eight - Go Boom**

From their position Tools, Jolt and Ratchet could only watch the others engage in battle with the Decepticons. The urge to join them was strong, Tools' fingers were itching to pull the trigger of a gun and Jolt had electricity crackling from his functional whip. Ratchet simply watched to take notice of any damage his comrades would need repairs for.

Ratchet's head titled to the side, his optic ridges furrowing he asked Jolt, "Are you getting the same thing I am?"

Jolt gave him a confused look before focusing entirely on the bunker, "The signal disruptor is down. I've got clear thermal readings from inside the bunker. You think it might be a trap?"

"It's got to be Roxie! Do you see her anywhere?" Tools' itch to pull the trigger got ten times stronger with the chance to be able to pull the trigger on Megatron.

Both bots had zeroed in on the bunker, their heads were twitching slightly left and right as they scanned the building for the single human inside it. "There I've got a visual. She's…she's laying on Megatron's shoulder?" Ratchet was baffled. Tools assumption that Roxie had somehow taken down the signal disruptor made the most sense. But if that were the case then Roxie should have been in a cage or suffering from a beating for punishment. Finding her on Megatron's shoulder, a privileged spot considering the damage that could be done from that location, was just ridiculous.

"We'll ask about that after she's back at Diego Garcia. Keep an eye on her while I get in touch with Bones and Sanders." Tools felt the slightest bit of relief, with a visual of Roxie they were that much closer to saving her.

Ratchet let it slide that Tools had pretty much ordered him and Jolt, though the orders were what he was going to do anyways.

"Harper to Private Bones, do you copy?" There wasn't a single bit of static interference, a good sigh that the signal disruptor was entirely out of commission.

'_**Private Bones here. We're on route and will arrive in 10 minutes. Drop zone is your location. Do us a favour and keep it clear of Decepticons, it's the least you can do after all the trouble it took to find your doo-dad.' **_Tools could hear the nerves Alice was trying to fight off and felt only a little bad for calling the happy go lucky woman into the fray. But he knew she and Beth would have chewed him out for not calling them in as well.

"I don't think you'll have to worry too much about the Decepticons. The Autobots are doing a good job dismantling them. Just get here as fast as you can, Harper out." He tapped the disconnect button and turned back to Ratchet and Jolt.

Jolt had his electricity charging again, "What's going on in the bunker?" Since Jolt was only looking at the bunker whatever was upsetting him must be happening inside.

Jolt's answer was a growl, "More complications."

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Megatron followed the progress of the battle using his own thermal scanners. The Autobots were all at full force and had taken down five of the new arrivals already, while the Autobots fought with the majority of the human forces a small group of humans had broken off and were advancing towards the doors. _**'Demolisher, go deal with the vermin.' **_Demolisher gave a broad grin and left to do so.

Roxie couldn't tell what was going on through the walls, and her ears were being assaulted by the explosions and sounds of Cybertronian fists meeting Cybertronian faces. She was just starting to get a little bit accustomed to the extra noise the earbuds on the collar were filtering into her head.

When Cyclonus had handed her over to Megatron he had told a story where she broke the signal disruptor. Roxie didn't bother to fight back saying Cyclonus had done it because technically it really had been her and she was proud of that. Megatron said nothing and put her back on his shoulder, his spark had hummed to her the punishment she would receive later. It was a punishment she wasn't sure she would live through.

Another explosion rang throughout the base, this one loud enough to cause the walls to shake and dust to fall from the ceiling. Then there came screams, human screams of death. Megatron flicked his optics to Roxie to see her reaction. Her face was pressed down against his shoulder and her knuckles were white as she gripped the edge of plating tighter with each scream. "And just think Roxanne, all of this could have been avoided if you hadn't befriended the Autobots. They are all going to die because of you." Megatron had to be sure Roxanne was somewhat punished for destroying the signal disruptor, a soft whimper let him know he was doing well.

-/-

"Shit! We lost everyone on the scouting team! Megatron has a Con on the inside watching the exits. Any word from Tools or Ratchet?" Epps had received word from one of their snipers about the scout team they'd sent for the nearest entrance to see if they could get a visual or even a chance at rescuing Roxie.

They were ducked behind a large boulder for cover, from each side they could watch a fight between a bot and con. To their left was Ironhide fighting the large Decepticon he'd originally shot. On the right Skids and Mudflap were messing with a Decepticon equivalent of a Neanderthal. Whenever Skids and Mudflap would start fighting each other the big Con would start laughing. This made Will wonder if Megatron was scraping the bottom of the army register for his men.

"Nothing yet! We need to start moving in before Megatron decided to just take off with Roxie!" Will yelled over the blasts and bangs of the fighting Cybertronians. The added gunfire from his men was welcome since it told him they were all still alive.

The sound of chopper blades beating the air got Will and Epps to look up. Will recognized the helicopter that had managed to get right above them, aiming up with his gun Will called out, " I owe you one from Annabelle you slagger!" He opened fire with Epps doing the same.

After Mission City any guns that could use them were loaded with heated sable rounds. Cyclonus definitely felt it when they shot straight for his underside. Cursing them Cyclonus tilted and slid his only door open, a large and vicious machine gun extended out. Will and Epps were running as the door was sliding open. His voice high and giddy Cyclonus followed them shooting just at the heels of their feet, "Where are you going squishies? It's my turn to put a few holes in you! HAHAHAHAHA!"

They'd run straight towards Ironhide who had barely managed to snap his opponent's neck. Hearing the laughter he turned, took aim and fired. True to his reputation Ironhide struck Cyclonus right on the wind shield blowing it all to pieces. "It's about time I put an end to you Cyclonus."

"I'd like to see you try Hidey! You're too old to even kill an organic insect!" Will and Epps looked from Ironhide to the massive Decepticon he'd just off-lined, then looked up at Cyclonus. Megatron really was scraping the bottom of the barrel. Which brought them just a little more hope.

Ironhide charged up his cannons, Cyclonus did a tight little circle and went into a nose dive. Seeing the opportunity Will and Epps opened fire on Cyclonus' blade base. One of their bullets managed to do something that caused Cyclonus' blades to start smoking and making an odd gurgling noise. "Ow! You fragging squishies! First Megatron's pet and now you two! I'm getting rid of you first!" Cyclonus changed course and turned his nose dive to Will and Epps.

"Oh no you don't. This is between you and me Cyclonus." Ironhide lunged up into the air and took hold of Cyclonus' tail. Using the force of their descent Ironhide swung Cyclonus down like a club.

Cyclonus didn't move or make any noise. Bringing up his cannons Ironhide growled, " Any last words?"

"Enjoy the after life Hidey." A small panel slid open on Cyclonus' underside, a grenade the size of Epps' head etched all over with blue glyphs rolled out. Ironhide grabbed Will and Epps and took off running, behind they heard Cyclonus laugh insanely. The grenade went off, the explosion covering nearly two miles. Ironhide managed to get far enough away to only be staggered. His back was pelted with debris of rock and dirt, including pieces of Cyclonus.

Putting the two humans back on the ground he sighed, "I always knew Cyclonus would be a kamikaze."

"What was that?" Will had seen a few of the explosives the Cybertronians had in their possession but never one that had blue and green effects when detonated.

"A grade 3 energon grenade. Thank Primus he wasn't carrying a grade 1 or no one would have survived." The smoke began to clear allowing them to get a look at the mangled husk that was once Cyclonus.

Looking around Will saw that the Autobots were slowly breaking through the Decepticons to the bunker. Arcee, Chromia and Flareup were on the move passed the third Decepticon to come in their way, they had a clear path to the bunker.

'_**Major Lennox! I have a visual on the droppers.' **_Tools' voice buzzed through his comm. piece. The needle of luck was finally beginning to point towards their cause.


	33. Invisibility Cloak

** J: Well I had intended to be a bit more happier about updating and would have been if the stupid editing thing here on was being more cooperative, has anyone else been having problems or am I just doing something wrong every time? Anyways, this chapter begins our descent towards the end of this lovely fanfiction. But do not grieve my duckies, for at the end of this chapter I am going to make a grand announcement I think you might all like.**

**THANKS TO:**

**Keacdragon: **Thank you for behaving, your reward is this new chapter XD

**Azura Tyrant: **You reviewed yay! Cyclonus in TFA always seemed a bit mentally unstable to me, so I thought I might as well make it pure insanity while I've got control over him hehe.

**LynxbyLynx: **"Eyebrow raise" I am well aware of their incompetence. But I seriously doubt you'd have been able to help Cyclonus much here, not unless you were the one that pulled the pin out of the grenade :P

**Jinxed just in Time: **No reviewer is suckish unless all they put in the review was "good." Your review was wonderful and helpful. With the brand that Megatron put on her back I deliberately let the readers use their imagination because I don't have the lingual capabilities to describe the brand how I see it. Sorry. And the grenade was a pin.

**Tailsdoll123: **You need not be curious any more, simply read :D

**Dontgotaclue88: **Yup, it was all green with some blue xD

**Ironaft30: **Well there are plenty more Cons than Autobots, it's only fair to try and even the sides somehow!

**DISCLAIMER: Transformers belongs to Hasbro, it should never belong to Micheal Bay (only people who have seen the third movie will know why.) Tools belongs to Ironaft30. Roxanne belongs to me.**

* * *

**- ****Chapter Twenty Nine - Invisibility Cloak**

Tools was shifting back and forth on his feet as he watched the little jet get closer. Alice and Beth were finally here with his ticket to getting Roxie back. Jolt and Ratchet had put their backs to Tools to keep watch for any approaching Decepticons. They believed Tools when he told them his invention would help them; they wanted the delivery to go smoothly and move on to the actual rescue. Megatron would only stay in that bunker for so long.

The jet finally flew over them releasing five passengers with parachutes. Not long after the drop off the jet was hit by a missile, had the passengers not jumped when they did everything would have gone downhill. Tools ran ahead to meet Alice and Beth as they hit the ground, "Son of a bitch! I thought I asked you to keep Decepticons away from us!"

"Yes well there are a lot of them and I can't keep track of every single shot they fire. Where's my invisibility cloak?" Tools looked over the girls and three soldiers that were set and ready for battle.

"You call this thingamajig an invisibility cloak? Watch a little too much Harry Potter? I've got it in my pack, the thing is heavy." Beth swung her large bulky tan pack off her back and pulled out the device. As he'd described it to them for them to find it was half a sphere. Most of it was silver with little blue circling lights rimming the edge. Lifting it up effortlessly Tools called out," You ready to become invisible?"

Jolt reached down and took the invention. Turning it this way and that he noticed that the bottom had a part that could be inserted to or export to. "I was expecting it to be something a human could use. What are its capabilities?" Jolt knew what to do with it but didn't want to risk it without knowing what he was dealing with.

"As the name implies it will make you invisible to the naked eyes and scanner. We'll be able to get into the bunker without any of the Decepticons seeing you." Tools had complete confidence in his invention, it hadn't been field tested yet, but it had worked fine when he activated it in his work room. In comparison to Cybertronian technology it was pretty crude; his calculations gave him conviction that it could handle being attached to a Cybertronian.

Jolt was still uncertain; with his options being limited he put just the smallest bit of trust in Tools. Using gentle quick motions developed from medic training he detached his damaged whip and stored it away in subspace. Putting the invisibility cloak in its place he watched the diagnostics of the thing appear in his processor. His systems in his arm adapted to compensate for the low grade tech until he had the signal for ready operation. Activating it he and everyone watched as the lights turned on and the half sphere began to spin at incredible speeds. Right in front of their eyes Jolt slowly faded away. Ratchet was impressed to see that Jolt's signal was gone immediately. He sent a quick reassurance to the fighting bots that Jolt was alright and that it was part of Tools' plan.

Once Jolt was entirely invisible Tools asked, "Will you be able to switch to alt mode with it?" In reply there came the tell tale sounds of transformation. Jolt opened his passenger doors revealing the inside of his alt mode. Everything was working successfully.

Ratchet nodded his approval, "I'm going to join Optimus and the others. Under normal circumstances I would never let you go near Megatron on your own. Since these are not normal circumstances I wish you the best of luck. Keep an eye out for the triplets, they've already gotten to the entrance and are dealing with Demolisher." Tools, Alice and Beth saluted Ratchet before he transformed to alt mode and drove off.

The three men that had come with the girls looked with longing towards the main battle. Jolt couldn't carry all of them. Since he was only a scout Tools had to use more time and comm. "Lennox, I've got three men here that can be put to work. What do you want them to do?"

'_**You could have given us a head up that your invention will put you off the radar! Send them my way and tell them not to engage the enemy unless necessary. Do you know what you're doing?' **_Will already knew what Tools and Jolt planned and knew he couldn't stop them. If possible he would just have to help him so he could learn how to do things more as a team.

"It'll be me, Jolt, Sanders, and Bones. We go in, get Roxie, and get out. We'll probably have to go very, very fast." Tools hand signaled the three soldiers their instructions then got in the front with Alice and Beth in the back. He had to admit, both women were quite intimidating carrying a belt of grenades, tom toms, and sniper rifles. Roxie definitely knew how to choose the best for friends.

The door closed and they were off at top speed. _**'We'll do what we can to keep the run way clear. And you all better come back alive. It's hard to find good soldiers you can rely on these days. Of course you haven't been one of them lately.' **_Tools had to smile. He knew how to choose good friends too.

-/-

"It seems Demolisher can't even handle a few femmes." Megatron had not been impressed when Cyclonus' signal went off-line. At present Demolisher had sent a quick message asking about what to do with the femmes. Among the Cybertronians there weren't that many left and they would be needed to repopulate their race.

Starscream was the only one left with him besides Roxanne. He deliberately announced this in English to let Roxanne know more of her "friends" were going to get hurt. "Shall I go assist him in taking car of the situation?"

"No, I will go myself. They came here to bid Roxanne farewell after all. What kind of mech would I be to deny the femmes this wish?" Megatron had too calm of a tone to his voice while speaking about the triplets.

Roxie wanted to bang her fists and yell for him to stay away from the femmes. They'd done nothing but show her kindness and be her friends. They didn't deserve whatever cruelty that Megatron was going to unleash on them. She didn't do this, it would only encourage Megatron. His punishment for her breaking the signal disruptor was him breaking her. He wanted her to be tame and to never question his orders. If he wanted her to jump, she would jump. Roxie knew she was nothing without her free will, if he ever managed to truly subdue her she wouldn't be able to live with herself.

He said he was taking her with him to see the triplets. Maybe she could escape, just maybe. The collar would make hiding difficult, if they could get to the main group Ratchet could get the collar off. This plan was risky and had little substance to it. Yet she was still going to attempt it.

-/-

Flareup, Arcee, and Chromia were beginning to lose their patience. When they'd gotten past hordes of Decepticons to get into the bunker they were pissed to be confronted by Demolisher. He on the other hand grinned from one audio receptor to the other, only repulsing them further. It was no secret that Demolisher had affections for Chromia, while she would just enjoy putting a bullet or two through his helm.

"Well aren't I the lucky mech to get you three femmes all to myself." The femmes had immediately made their triangle formation around Demolisher with their weapons loaded and ready. He'd simply stood there smiling at Chromia.

"Can it Demolisher. Give us back Roxie and we'll let you live for another day." Chromia's oil was churning she was so disgusted by the appreciative and longing looks Demolisher was giving her.

Demolisher's smile vanished at the mention of the annoying human. Activating his multiple missile launchers Demolisher growled, "That little insect doesn't deserve your processor space. Just forget about her, she belongs to Lord Megatron now." His missiles deployed, five aimed for each femme.

Their countless days on the training course came into use as they easily dodged each one and began to fire back. With his thick tank armor Demolisher managed to endure most of the shots, though Chromia's were the most painful. At this time Demolisher sent his message to Megatron for council. The reply he got back made him smile again.

The triplets saw that smile and got a bad feeling; they didn't stop their assault and did their best to aim for his optics and spaces under his armor.

Readings of another signal approaching had Flareup and Arcee get behind Demolisher to handle the new arrival. When Megatron entered the room with Roxanne on his shoulder their lowered their weapons a fraction.

Chromia dodged another few shots from Demolisher and saw what had caused her sisters to hold their fire. Her optics immediately found a small figure on his shoulder, "ROXIE!"

"It's very rude of you to greet her and not me first Chromia. I will let it slide this once since it will be the last time you ever see her again." Megatron took pleasure in the heated glares he was getting from the three femmes. He hadn't even begun to mess with them and they were already getting overly emotional.

With her cannons aimed for Megatron's face and spark chamber Chromia snipped back, "No Megatron, this will be the last time YOU will ever see her or the light of day ever again. I'll personally make sure of that."

Megatron chuckled, "A hefty threat to make. One you don't have to go through with. I'm willing to make you a deal. You three will join the Decepticons and I will let you keep Roxanne all to yourselves." As Megatron talked Roxie wiggled her fingers to get Flareup's attention. Flareup wiggled her wheel to let Roxie know she was watching.

Slowly and drawn out she mouthed the words, "lying." "Jump." "Catch." "Run." Flareup wiggled her wheel again to show she got the message. Flareup sent the plan to Arcee and Chromia as well. Demolisher had noticed the wheel wiggling and he'd caught the word mouthing. He let Megatron know; pleased to know he had ruined the human's pathetic escape plan.

If anything Megatron was both amused and disappointed. Roxanne would think of such a simplistic escape plan, the disappointment laid heavily in her lack of respect for him even after all that he'd done to her. This needed to be fixed, and what better way than with humiliation and pain. It all would come into play when Roxanne decided to try.

Throughout all this no one noticed the dust settle near the doors where Jolt had come to a crawling stop. Inside Beth and Alice pressed up against the windows. "Oh my god, is that Megatron?"

"Yup."

"He's huge…..Poor Roxie, look at how worn out she is."

"What's that nasty metal ring around her neck?" Beth pointed over Tools' shoulder to the dull metal on Roxie.

Tools took out a pair of binoculars to get a better look. When he figured out what it must be he grit his teeth, now he knew what Starscream had been making for Megatron. From the corner of his eye Tools saw Jolt's steering wheel twitching. Jolt clearly didn't like the thing either. Tools pat Jolt's dashboard reassuringly, "We'll pay them back for all the hell they've put her through, don't worry." Jolt wasn't going to settle for just paying them back; he was going to make them pay a whole lot extra.

-/-

Roxie's heart was beating out of control alongside the millions of thoughts running through her head. _'All the stress and negativity Megatron has been feeding me is making me hear things that's all….I hope I'm not hearing things.' _

A sound she had come to find comfort from was in the room or close to the door; she didn't dare look and try to find the source. The last thing she needed was for Megatron to discover the source and destroy it. The sound of panpipes in the form of electronic waves sung louder than Megatron's electronic guitar playing horrible notes, it sung louder then the triplets with their harmonized harps. All she could hear and wanted to hear was the panpipes she knew to be Jolt's spark.

Jolt had told her through her mother's lullaby that he would be there for her. Roxie wanted him and Tools to be here for her so badly. She wanted to be snug and safe in Jolt's alt mode held in Tools' embrace. The panpipes were telling her that that was why they were there. Even with the ear buds enhancing her hearing she couldn't make out many words. She was definitely able to hear the words 'save' and 'protect' over and over, coming from both the panpipes and the harps. In the background, being drowned out by all the beauty was Megatron's spark. She knew it was trying to needle her with whispers of dark intentions, torture, and misery for all her friends. Roxie didn't care and wouldn't bother to pay attention. All that mattered were the panpipes which she prayed wasn't just her imagination.

"That offer sounds so very tempting; it would be a dream deal if we didn't already know it was a lie. You only have two options Megatron, give us back Roxie or we kill you to take her back." Arcee had a gun pointed at Megatron and Demolisher. They hadn't forgotten the Decepticon jar head, they'd just put him on the bottom of the 'Important' list.

Hearing Arcee brought Roxie back to her current task of paying attention. She just needed a distraction or little moment to make her jump. Roxie had complete faith in the triplets to catch her, and there was now a good chance that there was someone else there to catch her too. A look to each femme showed them slightly leaning in her direction, ready to move when she took the chance.

Putting a hand over his spark chamber Megatron huffed, "Oh how untrusting you femmes you can be. Though with my wonderful reputation I don't blame you." The hand that had gone over his spark chamber shifted into a gun, he quickly aimed, and shot at Demolisher to immediately off-line the stunned mech. Roxie watched unblinking as Demolisher's body fell to the metal floor with a loud 'CLANG.'

Unfazed by Megatron's actions Chromia turned both cannons to Megatron, "That was a foolish thing to do. Now we only have you to aim at."

"If that's true why haven't you shot at me yet? Of course… it's because you're afraid of harming Roxanne. Which I can guarantee would happen." Megatron was rubbing it in that they couldn't do anything. Chromia's engines revved in response to her anger. Flareup and Arcee settled with charging their weapons. They'd honed their aim down to near perfection; once Roxie wasn't at risk they'd punch endless holes in Megatron.

The atmosphere was tense and all fighters were on alert. Roxie couldn't move even the slightest bit or she'd get caught. That was her thought until a random Decepticon went flying past the open doorway drawing everyone's attention. Not seeing any other opportunity coming about Roxie put her arms under her and pushed off to go falling backwards. She closed her eyes and waited for he results.

Megatron felt the movement just in time to turn and catch Roxanne in mid-air using his finger tips. He caught her right leg with just enough pressure to break her tibia. The pain was sharp, brutal, and fast. Roxie screamed out in agony and Megatron tsked, "See what you've done to yourself Roxanne."

"YOU are the one that did it Megatron." The triplets knew Roxie had suffered from Megatron's hands once already, but to witness and hear it for themselves was their end point.

The same could be said for the invisible by standers.

* * *

**J: It is time for the grand announcement! "Drum roooooooooooooooolllllllll"**

**You need not to worry about this fanfiction ending because I have THREE! Count them, THREE! Sequels planned out to follow! And plenty of one shots to go in-between! **

**AND! FOR THE 350TH AND 400TH REVIEWER I SHALL GIVE THEM THE PRIZE OF KNOWLEDGE! THE REVIEWER SHALL BE GRANTED THE KNOWLEDGE OF THE NEXT TITLE AND A SUMMARY!**

**Until next chapter duckies!**


	34. Run Run Run!

**J: The editing program on fanfiction is REALLY starting to get on my nerves! ARGH! "Deep breathe." Okay! This nice big hunk of chapter is sadly the first of the last three. I know I know, you are all sitting there going WHY? But let me just remind you guys that there are plenty of one shots to follow that will then lead to the sequel!**

**Thanks to:**

**Tailsdoll123: **Heh, is it starting to be bothersome that it's taking them so long to get her away from him?

**Keacdragon: **You're the first of many to follow to ask about owning one, and all I can reply is that you will have to either A) Invent it yourself or B) Hang out with Mirage since that might be the only way you can achieve the same effect ahha.

**Dontgotaclue88: **"Headtilt" Didn't know breaking someone's shin bone was something to be complimented about lol.

**Hedgi: **I'm glad your day was made better, and thank you for not saying specifically that which Micheal Bay did wrong in the third movie, wouldn't want to ruin it for those yet to have their hearts ripped to shreds.

**Katie Gibbs: **Honestly I've personally never broken a bone, so you and Roxie can share the horror stories :3

**Zoey the Wolf: **Yeeea, I was getting fed up with myself and not being able to get things to progress more smoothly. What part were you confused about? I'll try and explain it if I can.

**Azura Tyrant: **You're just going to have to wait and see if he gets his punishment. But this chapter will show you that he was wrong about something which brings him down just a lil bit.

**Terry Gibbs: **It seems I have a few readers who also loves NCIS (:D) Love the show. As for your review to chapter seven...you have a LOT to read hun xD

**Latine Shewolf: **How are you feeling? Hopefully you can get to this chapter before the next one comes out. And thank you for both of your lovely piece by piece review for the previous two chapters :3 It makes me happy to know you're not leaving me.

**BlazingXDarkness: **Love your username!

**Venetiangirl92: **I might put in SOME of the points from the third movie in one of the sequels to follow, for this one it's too close to ending for me to make any additions like that. And I'm assuming when you said you just started reading you meant you started in the same day and caught up in the same day. If so, good job! :D

**LynxbyLynx: **You're right, I did make it sound more dramatic over chat. Sorry about that sis!

**BIG THANKS TO MY BETA KHALTHAR! Sorry for not giving thanks last chapter! Not use to adding this to the N/A yet ahha.**

**Disclaimer: Transformers belongs to Hasbro. Tools belongs to Ironaft30. Roxanne belongs to me. ASK BEFORE USING CHILDREN!**

* * *

**Chapter Thirty - Run, Run, Run!**

"If you don't tell us what to do right now we're breaking your door open and shooting at Megatron until his arm comes off." The tone Beth used left no doubt in Jolt's processor that she was going do as she said. Alice had taken out her tom tom to show she was ready to follow Beth's example.

"You do that and Roxie is a goner. I've got a plan but I don't know how things will play out." Tools' face was set with the look of death. Hearing Roxie in pain refreshed the memory of her screaming and him being stuck unable to help her at all. This time was different, this time he was going to prevent her from being hurt further and would return the pain dealt to her to the dealer.

Jolt said nothing and did nothing. He wanted to eject his passengers and lunge for Megatron's spark chamber. The only thing keeping him from going through with this impulse was the memory of what happened to Jazz. Jolt was taller and bulkier than Jazz, but it could still be possible for Megatron to do the same thing. Venting the smallest bit of air he asked without demanding, "What's your plan? And make it quick."

"Beth, Alice, out of the two of you who is better with the sniper rifle?" His plan would solely rely on surprise and timing. They only had one chance and they couldn't screw it up.

Alice gave a little wave of her hand to indicate herself. "You're going to take aim and shoot Megatron's right optic. If we're lucky it will catch him off guard enough to drop Roxie. If not then Jolt will take out his legs or do something like that to get him to fall over. First we need to let the triplets know we're here, we'll need their help for the get away once we get Roxie." Alice and Beth openly showed their faith in this plan with a small frown. He agreed that it wasn't the best plan and he would gladly take another plan into consideration.

"The femmes have been made aware. Alice get to work. Time is running out and I'm not going to lose her." Jolt's issue of instructions stunned the humans for a second that he didn't appreciate losing. Alice went through the motions of loading, adjusting and taking position with fluid, efficient movements. Jolt's window lowered just enough for Alice to get the barrel of the rifle out and steady. On the outside if anyone looked closely enough they could see a floating section of car interior with a gun pointing out.

One eye shut to focus Alice zeroed in on Megatron's optic. While they had been discussing the plan Megatron had changed his hold on Roxie so that he clutched her in his left hand. "You took my friend so I'll take your optic. Asshole." The muffler attached to the rifle silenced the shot, making the surprise have full impact when Megatron's optic was struck.

"WHAT? WHO DID THIS? SHOW YOURSELF!" Megatron's snarl was loud and fierce, Alice jumped back from the window to avoid the glare his functional optic was casting around the room frantically searching for the threat.

Roxie was still being held by Megatron, giving Jolt his cue to rev up and charge for Megatron's legs. The sound of his engine gave away their position; Megatron began rapid firing following the trail of the engine. In his haste to destroy the invisible enemy Megatron left himself open for the triplets. Chromia went for Megatron's newly made blind spot aiming for sections on his body not covered with his thick armor. A well placed shot hit Megatron on the inner elbow joint causing it to lock in place.

Jolt swerved hard to use the side of his body to strike Megatron's legs from behind. His knees bent putting him off balance and leaning forward. Chromia and Arcee used this and Megatron's locked elbow to jump up onto his clenched fist.

Righting himself Megatron used his other hand and arm to swat off the femmes. "You will not take what is rightfully mine!" With much pain Megatron forced his arm to cooperate as he transformed into his alt mode. His transformation placed Roxie in his interior keeping her out of immediate reach. Megatron blasted through the femmes and the just approaching Ironhide and Optimus.

Jolt had ejected Alice and Beth upon their insistence; they knew Jolt and Tools would work better without them around. When Megatron had taken off they were right behind him. And Starscream was right behind them.

/-/

The pain in her leg was a thousand times more brutal than the road rash she'd gotten only a few weeks ago. Roxie couldn't focus on any one thing for more than a few seconds.

At one point she'd been squeezed to near suffocation, she'd faded into darkness only to be brought back by more movement. She could breathe again and the sound of Megatron shooting constantly drew her hazed mind to ask what Megatron was trying to hit. The pain pushed her back to the pleasant void. Roxie wanted to stay in that empty space so she didn't have to feel the pain in her leg or the throb in her back. A jumbled collection of harp music opened her eyes, the pain was still there, but so were Chromia and Arcee. They were pulling on the fingers Megatron had wrapped around her. Chromia's optics met her eyes, the wish for her freedom and complete safety shone from Chromia's blue optics bright enough that Roxie didn't need to hear it from her spark. As the darkness began to pull her back Roxie managed to whisper loud enough for Chromia and Arcee to hear," I'll see you when I wake up from this nightmare." As the darkness closed in again Roxie let herself relax, she was going to be fine. She didn't know what was telling her this or why she believed it but she put complete faith in this feeling so she could finally rest.

-/-

Starscream was thoroughly enjoying himself. From the cameras he'd planted throughout the miserable base when first finding it Starscream watched the great Lord Megatron be barraged by Autobots. He didn't doubt that there were four Autobots, not just the femmes, working to bring him down. The invisibility caused Starscream to consider that it might be the Autobot's recon agent designated Mirage, a quick check on the World Wide Web showed no reports of meteor sightings. This left the only possibility to be a device that copied Mirage's ability to disappear.

'_**Starscream! You worthless pile of rust! Join me at once and cover me! We are retreating, I have what I want, and there is no need to remain here.' **_Megatron's orders fouled Starscream's good mood. If only the femme Chromia had managed to damage Megatron's vocalizer and communications system.

"I will be there immediately Lord Megatron." The communication line cut Starscream looked around for the best exit route. The Autobots and their human alliance were all around the building, simply leaving out the doors was not an option. In the end he decided that the only way he could go was up. A single shot blew a large enough hole in the ceiling for him to fit. Starscream was glad to be rid of the filthy disgusting building. He leaped up to transform and launch in the air.

Exiting to the vast blue sky was exhilarating for all of three seconds. Spotting him the Autobots, those that weren't fighting, opened fire on him. Dodging their shots was youngling's play. Fearing what punishment Megatron would dish out to him Starscream begrudgingly flew after Megatron's signal. His heat sensors told of the human in Megatron's interior, this display of protection mixed repulsion into the stew of irritation and loathing. A single missile drew Starscream's attention to the ground.

He could see nothing on his sensors but a trail of dust revealed a hidden enemy. Swooping down Starscream released a torrent of bullets; a few seemed to hit the car before it swerved. When the bullets had made contact a flicker of blue revealed the form of the foe that was pursuing Megatron, _**'My Lord, it seems that the Autobot you were kind enough to spare wasn't grateful for his life.'**_

'_**Of course he wasn't grateful. I knew he was suicidal from the beginning. Dispose of him immediately.'**_ Megatron had just a touch of humor to his voice, everything else screamed confidence. No low life Autobot had a chance of releasing his hold on his property. Only Optimus Prime could ever stand up to all powerful Megatron.

Taking this as permission Starscream cut his speed back enough to keep the dust trail in his sights. "You should have just off-lined yourself before you were found. Oh well, you're mistake is my pleasure." Aiming straight for the area presumed to be the front end of the following Autobot Starscream released three missiles.

Jolt used every curse he'd ever learned and/or heard. The first two missiles he'd managed to evade, the third shot got lucky and struck the center of his hood, which was right where his transformation had placed the invisibility cloak. The invisibility cloak destroyed Jolt became visible to the naked optic and sensor once more.

Wincing at the smoking remains of one of his greatest inventions Tools sighed, it was a casualty that was bound to happen eventually, and he still had the blue prints back at Diego Garcia. "Did that do you any damage?" Tools loaded his weapon with a few more rounds; some of them were green, and black instead of black and silver, at the same time he kept an eye on Starscream for Jolt since Jolt was keeping watch on Megatron.

"Felt like a scraplet bite, I'll be fine. You just focus on getting Screamer off my aft." The need to be rid of Starscream was made more apparent when Jolt swerved to avoid another shower of bullets.

Their invisibility cover gone Tools decided to go without complete caution and opened the door to get a better shot at Starscream. Barely balancing on the seat Tools aimed for Starscream's cockpit, "You're nothing but an annoying little mosquito sucking off of Megatron. It's time you got squished." Locked on he pulled the trigger. The new weapon caught Tools by surprise when it launched a missile that broke into a scatter shot that pierced the armor around and on the cockpit. The pain and brief shock drove Starscream further up in the sky which was a bit of an achievement.

Pulling the door shut Tools affectionately pat the weapon, "I think I just fell in love with an inanimate object again." He decided he would never use another gun ever again.

"Good for you. Now use your new girlfriend to stop Megatron from taking off with Roxanne!" Jolt had started this rescue mission with a little bit of respect for the human field scout, at present he had 0.01 percent respect for him.

Leaning almost all the way out the window this time Tools shot Megatron's thrusters. Megatron was rising higher every second, if he waited too long they'd be out of striking range. The scatter shot bullets reached their target but did little damage. "This isn't going to work we need -"

"Optimus!" Jolt answered the question as he called out what he saw. Optimus Prime with his jet additions soared onto the scene to drop down onto Megatron. Jolt and Tools watched without blinking as Megatron barrel rolled and nose dived to try and dislodge Optimus. Starscream came up alongside the dueling leaders only to be blown away by a well timed shot made by Megatron that was aimed for Optimus, but was dodged. Megatron in his alt mode couldn't fight off Optimus to the best of his abilities.

Megatron refused to rejoin the Matrix, _**'Starscream I'm going to release Roxanne. You will catch her and continue on. Drop her or lose her and I will tear you limb from limb and scatter your parts throughout space.'**_

'_**Understood Lord Megatron.' **_Starscream was hurting in multiple places; the shot he'd taken had removed armor plating from his back. He needed to land and transform to mend the wounds. With the human to worry about this would not be possible. Starscream made a fast decision that would put him on the top of Megatron's death list but he knew places on Earth and in space to take shelter in until Megatron cooled down.

Starscream got into position beneath Megatron, Optimus had found some balance and was attempting to pry open the hatch into Megatron's interior. Megatron performed a triple barrel roll that put Optimus on his left wing. During the second roll Megatron opened the hatch allowing Roxanne to fall out and down towards Starscream. Right side up Optimus saw Megatron's hatch close, before he could jump off to go after Roxanne Megatron transformed and grabbed onto Optimus' back. "Roxanne belongs to me! She carries my brand; you have no right to take her!"

"She was and never will be yours Megatron. Roxanne belongs to herself!" Changing his hand to his hook Optimus reached back to snag Megatron under the chin. Pulling forward he tossed Megatron over his shoulder to fall towards the ground.

Starscream had opened his cockpit to show Megatron he was going to catch her as ordered. The second Megatron dropped the human he closed his cockpit and took off in the opposite direction of Megatron. "Think fast Autobot, or you'll have gone through all this for a puddle of human goo." Laughing at the misery of that scene Starscream flew off at top speed.

Jolt was running at full speed and Roxie was falling faster. His knuckles white as he clutched the dash board Tools asked in a low whisper, "Are we going to make it?"

"We will even if I have to destroy my own spark to do it." Unable to accept the possibility of failing after everything the three of them had been through Jolt did the one thing that Ratchet would definitely kill him for. He transferred the energon in his systems to his engine; the energon acted like nitrous and launched them at speeds that nearly put the speedometer needle on the bottom of the other side. Even at the increased speed Jolt's calculations added up to them still not making it. "Tools I can only see one way of catching her in time. It's going to be dangerous for your health."

"I don't care, do whatever you need to." Tools had a feeling that a weapon wouldn't be necessary for what Jolt had in mind and put his gun in the back.

"I'm going to sling shot you. At our current speed projecting you will let you reach her in the air. Your landing will likely break your ribs and an arm." Jolt felt he should be fair to let Tools know exactly what kind of pain he was agreeing to.

Tools raised an eyebrow at Jolt's radio, "Uh, thanks for the info but I repeat. I don't care, if you're going to sling shot me now would be an excellent time." Tools nodded towards Roxie who was steadily getting closer and closer towards the ground.

Jolt put just a bit more energon in his engine to add more speed. His engine running as hard as it could he put the idea into motion. He transformed to his bi-pedal mode and in the process grabbed Tools in his hand, still moving forward Jolt rolled pulled back his arm and threw Tools.

The G-force and air pressure were intense enough to pull the skin on his face back, Tools was sure that if there was another person with him they would be laughing. With his arms still able to move he brought them forward, Roxie grew steadily closer. Jolt had tossed him at the angle necessary to make him cross paths with her fall. _'Just a little more…'_

Roxie was close enough for him to see defined details. Her face was slightly scrunched from the pain in her leg, the shirt he'd given her for cover was ripped and dirty. These details he could tolerate since they were fixable, the metal collar that he could see bruising her neck bothered him more than anything.

The air stung his eyes to make them tear up; a couple of blinks to clear them and he found Roxie within arms reach. Taking hold of her by the arms he pulled her into a protective embrace, the ground grew closer faster than he'd reached Roxie. At the angle his body was turned Jolt's prediction for damage was going to be quite accurate. Thankfully it was at an angle that would spare Roxie any contact with the dirt and rocks they were going to grind against.

Pressing his face into her hair Tools whispered to Roxie, "Don't worry Roxie, not even broken ribs are going to make me let you go. We're going to land, we're going to get picked up by Jolt and we'll go home." Just as he finished making this promise he felt his back slam into the ground.

* * *

**J: Just a reminder and an update!**

Reminder: **The reader that gets the slot of reviewer 350 will get a private message from me announcing the title of the sequel and summary!**

Update: **On deviantart I was tagged to do a journal entry with a Q and A for three of my original characters. I chose to do Roxie, a character you might know from another fanfic named ShortShift, and Beth and Alice (they are a package deal so count as one character xD) I've posted the link to this journal tag on my profile for anyone interested to get a little more insight on Roxie, Beth and Alice.**


	35. Collecting Pieces

**J: It's getting close to the end my duckies. This is sadly the second last chapter and unfortunately for you guys I'm on a roll with my writing, meaning the last chapter will come up quite quickly. Since this is the second last chapter I decided to make it fairly lengthy :3**

**THANKS TO:**

**Venetiangirl92: **Shhhh! Don't give away spoilers! And as it stands I'm not sure HOW I would incorporate things from the third movie.

**Hedgi: **I'm with you, I've never broken a bone though I kinda wish I had just for reference ahha.

**Standout4Christ:** Jolt wishes he had rocket boosters. Sadly he doesn't, he just put his own energon through his engine to give him some boost.

**Keacdragon: **Was it when Starscream let Roxie fall to her death that you had a panic attack? "Headtilt"

**Azura Tyrant: **Almost, they are SO close, read and you'll see :3

**Sarasblackcolt: **Heh, I can see where the admiration for Jolt out does Tools XD

**Gelly619: **"Applaudes" Good job reading everything in one day. As a reward here is a new chapter update faster than usual.

**Dontgotaclue88: **Heh, Roxie shares that same thought, you'll see towards the end.

**Tailsdoll123: **Yup pretty much, but bad luck always has to end eventually right? And yes I have seen it and it is quite sad :(

**LynxbyLynx: **I would honestly rather login and find it back to the old model before this nonsense, finding the names of the people who reviewed was SO much easier! The good work shall hopefully continue with this chapter!

**Lightwolfheart:** Congrats on being reviewer 350! You've already been sent the title and summary which you seem to be looking forward to XD

**Psychotic Coconut Observer: **I have to say I'm getting more and more interesting reviewer names every chapter XD

**A special thank you to Khalthar for being my Beta for this, I wish I'd found you sooner!**

**Disclaimer: Transformers belongs to Hasbro. Tools belongs to Ironaft30. Roxanne belongs to me. AND a character you may or may not recognize from another fanfiction called "Spark Bondage" is briefly mentioned towards the end and he belongs to LynxbyLynx.  
**

**- ****Chapter Thirty One - Collecting Pieces**

Jolt had followed after Tools as fast as he could, he watched with zoomed in vision when Tools caught Roxie and descended to the ground. He kind of wished that his estimate of damage hadn't been accurate. Approaching the two humans he heard Tools gasping and groaning in pain. "Ratchet whatever you're doing needs to be dealt with later. Roxanne and Tools need immediate medical attention."

'_**I'm on my way, Ironhide took over for me. Do you see Optimus?' **_Jolt had honestly forgotten about Optimus when he'd seen Roxanne get dropped out of Megatron. Searching the skies now he spotted Optimus going hand to hand with Megatron still. "He's making small talk with Megatron. I'll let you know when he's done punching his face plates in…He's done punching his face plates in." Jolt smirked crookedly as Optimus got another fist into the side of Megatron's face where Alice had taken out his optic. Unable to fly he was willing to accept this method of revenge.

Megatron put distance between the two of them, without his right optic he was being brought down by Optimus. He wasn't going to win this fight, not that it mattered that much to him. Starscream had taken his gift to safety…Or so he thought. Starscream's signal had vanished off his radar, but the collar on Roxanne told him she was within the immediate area. _**'Consider yourself dead Starscream.' **_Megatron had lost the All-Spark only because he'd been off-lined. He would not lose his gift from Primus. Letting out a loud roar containing no words Megatron dove down towards the direction of the signal. Optimus saw what he was aiming for and took chase.

Jolt cursed and put himself in the path of the on coming Megatron. He didn't understand how Megatron had known she was still there or where she was. Optimus had kept him distracted so there was no way for Megatron to have seen Starscream deliberately let her fall. "Wait…" Staying in his position as living barrier Jolt glanced over his shoulder at Roxie. His sight narrowed in on the collar around her neck and the glyphs carved into it. The collar was the only thing different from when he'd last seen her. But he couldn't move to try and take it off; he also didn't have the necessary equipment. "Ratchet, you need to get here faster."

'_**I've got a visual of you. I'll be there in two minutes.' **_Ratchet's gruff tone had more of an edge to it, Jolt worried that he'd taken damage.

Optimus got close enough to Megatron to grab hold of his foot and pull back with his thrusters in reverse. This only enraged Megatron more, his hand shifted to his blaster which he fired at Optimus' hand. The shot took off two of his fingers causing him to lose his hold. Megatron boosted his thrusters to advance further. Setting his optics on Jolt Megatron brought out his largest blaster shifted out from both hands. "She is MINE!"

Jolt smiled at the circumstance he was in. At the beginning of the month he'd viewed humans as barbarian nuisances that didn't deserve his attention. Now he was putting himself in the path of death to keep two humans alive. If this was his time to join the Matrix then he would depart from life clean of regrets.

Megatron's blaster was fully charged and he was nearly to the ground. His finger began to pull the trigger only to stop from that and his descent.

Megatron wasn't making sense, what was he doing? A small whimper below Jolt explained it. "Roxanne get back behind me." He'd been so intent on keeping himself between Megatron and Roxie, that he didn't notice or feel Roxie crawl over between his legs and lean against the right leg with one of her arms outstretched. She looked childish with her right leg raised but her expression was pure stubbornness.

Her right leg throbbed with pain that made her want to curl up in a ball and cry. When she'd woken up she'd been utterly confused to find herself outside lying in Tools' arms. The pain jogged her memory to what had happened before she'd succumbed to exhaustion. A large shadow and a heart shuddering roar helped her to figure out what was happening. Megatron was on his way to collect her and Jolt stood in his way to protect both her and Tools.

During the time she had been in darkness Megatron must have placed her closer to his spark, for the cruel voice that sang to her gloated about Megatron's long thought out plan. Back when he was still frozen Megatron had decided to use her for his goal of destroying the Autobots. To guarantee his claim to her if he got the chance to collect her he had purposely looked for her mech creator (she figured that meant her dad) and killed him. The day he had done this he had wanted only the All-Spark so he chose to leave her alone. After his resurrection and need of audio dampeners he recalled her existence and usefulness.

In conclusion it was her fault that her father had been killed. This distressful realization had woken her up.

Grasping the current scenario she disentangled herself from Tools and struggled over to her protective position. No one else was going to die because of her, and that included the mech assigned to her for a guardian. "I'm not going anywhere. As soon as I'm somewhere else he's going to kill you. I'm not letting that happen."

Their debate over who was protecting who didn't get much further thanks to Optimus pile driving Megatron into the ground. Being forced to watch various sports, including wrestling came in quite handy. Megatron's spinal column didn't fair well from the attack, his systems cried out for medical attention. Megatron wanted his property but he needed to be alive to use her. With this thought in his processor Megatron made a quick shot that knocked Optimus over. Glaring straight at Jolt and Roxie he pointed while telling Jolt something in Cybertronian. He transformed and flew off for outer space.

With Megatron and the threat he imposed gone, Roxie let her body do what it wanted, which was to fall on to her side in a moaning heap. Jolt crouched down to get closer look and run a scan over her, this only made her moan more since he'd forgotten how horrible a scan sounded to her. The results showed a lot of problems but none of them life threatening. Roxie paused in her pained moaning to ask in a weak voice, "What - what did Megatron tell you before he flew off?"

Jolt didn't answer right away, when he did it was in avoidance, "I'll tell you when you're back to full health." Roxie didn't bother to argue. Jolt's answer was enough to let her know it wasn't anything good. She agreed that in her current state, hearing bad news wasn't going to help her any.

Relaxing as much as she could, Roxie closed her eyes and fell back into a more peaceful abyss of good dreams and memories knowing she was going to wake up in a bed safe and sheltered.

Optimus had watched until Megatron was completely gone from his sights. Reports from the men and Major Lennox informed him that the Decepticons were attempting to retreat, the military picked off as many as they could to prevent further sightings in the future. "The threat to Roxanne has diminished."

"Not entirely. Did you hear what Megatron said before he left?" Activating his holoform Jolt very gently picked up Roxanne; he would have to thank Ratchet for allowing his holoform to interact with physical matter.

Optimus gave a single nod. "I will allow you to take care of my property for now. But I will return for her. The extent of Megatron's injuries will prevent him from following through with this promise long enough for us to prepare for it." As Optimus repeated Megatron's warning Ratchet pulled to a stop by Tools.

He activated his holoform and lowered down two stretchers that he could retract into his hold for monitoring. Ratchet got Tools on one of the stretchers that earned a few loud groans and moans. Jolt put Roxie on the other stretcher although a bit reluctantly. Once the two injured humans were safely loaded in Ratchet's alt mode; he spoke to them through the comm system, "First and foremost both her and Tools need rest. No one will bother them about anything until I say so." Optimus and Jolt held up their hands to show compliance with Ratchet's orders. Since Ratchet announced this over the general communications system the other bots were aware of the order as well. It didn't stop the triplets, along Beth and Alice from pestering him when they met up at the bunker.

"I want to see with my own optics how she is." Chromia stood right up against Ratchet's bumper with her hands on her hips.

Ratchet backed up from Chromia growling, "I already told you that neither of them will be bothered."

Flareup came over to Chromia and put a hand on her shoulder to calm her down. Using a soft voice Flareup asked, "Would it be possible for us to visit Roxie in the med bay after you've gotten her bandaged and everything?"

Ratchet vented a sigh, "Fine, but not today, tonight, tomorrow, or any time immediately."

This did not sit well with Chromia, "Then WHEN are we able to see her Ratchet?"

"Can we please discuss this AFTER we get back to base? Our rides home will be here shortly and I just want to get back without a problem so I can tell Sarah and Annabelle that Roxie is safe." After all the stress Will had been through for the past few days, getting back to Diego Garcia to deliver good news and getting into bed seemed like a beautiful thing to do.

Ratchet and Chromia huffed but agreed to hold off the argument for later.

Tools didn't need to open his eyes and see the cast on his left arm and the wrap around his ribs to know those areas were broken. His throat was paper dry restricting him to make a single groan. "Good to see you're awake, Tools. I was beginning to wonder if you'd jostled your brain too much in your landing."

The fluorescent lights on the ceiling took a second for Tools' eyes to adjust to, when his sight came into focus he was being looked down on by Ratchet. Instead of the water he needed Tools instead asked in a rough voice, "Roxie?"

Ratchet rolled his optics and got Tools a glass of water using his holoform. "Roxanne is here, safe and recovering. She hasn't woken up yet, but she should soon. Now drink that and stop worrying, you're far more damaged than she is."

Tools drank the glass of water and then the entire pitcher of water in record time. His throat more at ease Tools ignored Ratchet's words about not worrying and persisted, "How long have we been asleep? What happened to Megatron?"

"Nnngh…..Tools, stop talking. Trying to sleep over here." A weary scratchy female voice drew their attention to the bed on the other side of the room. Tools smiled upon seeing red hair and lightly tanned skin.

Roxie had her eyes still closed; she'd been having a nice little dream with her flying down the road on her motorcycle with Jolt beside her and Tools on the seat behind her. Being taken away from that to wake up in a reality where she was stuck in bed with her leg raised up in a cast and sling as well as a thick bandage of some kind taped to her back was not an uplifting experience. Ratchet sent his holoform over to her with a glass of water; she only needed two drinks to satisfy her. "How are you feeling Roxanne?"

"Good enough to keep nagging Tools if necessary. My back is insanely itchy though. " Roxie wiggled under the sheets to try and get rid of that maddening itch.

"Stop that or you'll make the strings keeping your gown tied together come undone." Ratchet was pleased and annoyed. Both of his patients were stable mentally and physically but they were already beginning to make his processor hurt.

Roxie stopped immediately. Tools had almost seen her bare chest once; she did not need to give him a full show. "He did ask a good question. How long have we been asleep?"

"You've been unconscious for five days, it's late afternoon now. Meaning your regulars should be here any minute." Ratchet expectantly looked towards the doors. Roxie and Tools raised an eyebrow when the doors opened for Jolt, the triplets, Ironhide and Sideswipe to walk in.

Seeing them awake, Chromia glared at Ratchet, "Why didn't you tell us they woke up? We would have been here sooner." Flareup and Arcee went to Roxie's bed to check her over and lightly hug her.

Facing Chromia down Ratchet answered, "The last thing they need is to be smothered when they first wake up." Chromia grumbled something under her breath about Ratchet being mean on purpose then went to snuggle Roxie.

Ironhide and Sideswipe went to check on Tools. "How do you feel after being the first human pellet from a Cybertronian sling shot?" Sideswipe smiled with a bit of respect to his human friend. They'd all heard the story from Jolt about their grand rescue of Roxanne. Sideswipe and Sunstreaker had boasted that only one of their friends would be brave enough to even try anything as dangerous as something like 'Jet Judo' even though they're human.

Tools looked down at his arm and ribs to reply, "I feel absolutely fantastic. I'd be more than happy to do it again."

"I don't think Ratchet will ever let you out of the med bay if you keep saying things like that." Ironhide nodded his head over to Ratchet. Ratchet had heard everything and pointedly glared at the three of them for being idiots.

Jolt had a decent amount of things to talk to Roxanne about, but with all the visitors and the rest that were sure to come he held back. He waited at the door until no one was paying attention to him then slipped out. For the past couple of days he'd been thinking of a new project, reassured that Roxanne would be okay he decided it was time to get started on it.

Throughout the rest of the afternoon and well into the evening Roxie and Tools were visited by all the Autobots and all the soldiers that had participated in the rescue mission that they'd labeled "Mission: Rocks." There had been a lot of rock formations in the area of the battle and the focus of the mission was to rescue Roxie.

Beth and Alice fought with Ratchet until he agreed to let them set up cots on either side of Roxie's bed. Roxie nearly cried three times, all the visitors that talked to her showed genuine concern for her well being. She never thought that so many people cared about her. Though the one being that she was worried about had her baffled. She recalled him being one of the first few to come into the med bay after she'd woken up, but he'd left without saying anything. She asked Ratchet about his condition, Ratchet reassured her that he was 70 percent recovered.

Trusting in Ratchet's word Roxie did what she could to enjoy the company of her friends, including Wheelie who she thanked 20 times over for helping the others figure out the mystery of her capture. Towards the end of the afternoon everyone but Beth and Alice were kicked out of the med bay. Tools had fallen asleep earlier due to his medication. Beth and Alice had gone to the mess hall promising to sneak some food back for her what with Ratchet only wanting her to drink a simple chicken broth. Left alone Roxie's mind went back to thinking about Jolt.

The doors used by the Autobots slid open and the mech of her thoughts walked in. His armor had been replaced as well as his fingers, all in all he looked exactly as he had before the hell they'd gone through. Smiling she asked in jest, "What? Did you just remember I exist?"

"It wasn't you I forgot about, it was all the loud attention hogging others I forgot about." Jolt walked into the room and locked the doors behind him. He'd been hovering around the med bay on and off to check if it was empty. This being the only chance he could see he didn't want others butting in before he finished telling Roxanne what had been on his processor.

Roxie followed Jolt with her eyes as he moved to the wall opposite from her and sat down on the floor. From what he'd just aid she guessed he wanted to talk to her without an audience. He was being serious so she would listen and keep any remarks until the end.

Making eye/optic contact he started with a sigh, "Two days ago I asked Optimus to be your permanent guardian. He agreed, from here on out you're stuck with me."

'_Screw not making remarks.' _"Does that mean I get to look forward to you tying me up to a tree more often?" Jolt rolled his optics as she smiled.

"If you keep being a smart aft like that then maybe…Roxanne do you remember what happened before you fell back asleep?"

She remembered every last little detail, she replied with a nod. "Before Megatron flew off he told me he would come back for you. That's part of why I asked to be your guardian." Jolt could see that this news was upsetting, Roxie had broken eye contact to look down at her balled up hands. "What happened before won't happen again. There will always be one or two Autobots with us when we leave base." This eased her fear enough to look back up at him.

"You said Megatron's threat was part of the reason for why you wanted to be my guardian. What's the other part?" Roxie wanted to get away from the topic of her nightmare and it seemed that Jolt had intended to talk about it anyway.

Jolt shifted just a tiny bit, a sign that he was going to stumble awkwardly over this. The first thing he said was both comical and confusing, "Because you're a parasite." Seeing her confused expression with a twitching smile he clarified, "Okay not a parasite per say but something like it, ivy maybe. What I'm trying to say is that you've somehow grown on me. When we first met I wanted nothing to do with you. But then I learned about your history, about the person you've become because of what you've gone through. The kind of pain you've endured psychologically has consumed numerous femmes and mechs I've known. Despite all that you've kept it together. Almost." Roxie glanced away recalled the different times she'd broken down when on her own and the odd time where her anger over came her depression.

"On Cybetron I was supposed to follow Jazz's orders in Tyger Pax. I was taking care of three femmes that had managed to escape detection. They were regular femmes; they had no defensive programming or weapons. Jazz got called to join Optimus leaving me solely to defend them. Before he left he told me exactly what you said a few days ago. He told me to run until a tactical advantage presented itself. I was over confident at the time and brushed off his words. To this day I don't know how but a vicious ruthless Decepticon named Berserker found our hiding spot. Berserker is a stupid Con and I took more confidence from that. Berserker's stupidity is actually a trick. He waited for the right moment and took me down. Right before he could finish me off Cliffjumper showed up to save my aft. I recovered and got the femmes out and in hiding spots using cloaking shields Wheeljack had made just for those situations. I went back to help Cliffjumper but it was already too late. Berserker had destroyed his spark and left while the going was good. Because of my overconfidence and ignorance to the advice Jazz gave me we lost one of our best comrades. I couldn't accept myself after that, I changed myself into a mech that could follow all orders and handle any situation." Jolt didn't know why he felt compelled to tell Roxie about his greatest failure but it felt right, once he finished he felt better. He felt like his old self and he realized that he missed that feeling of inner peace he didn't know he'd given up.

Roxie wanted to leave her bed to hug Jolt wherever she could. He understood exactly what she was going through. They both had caused a loss to happen, though his was a far more depressing tale and he had come to terms with the realization long before she had. She couldn't get out of the bed to hug him so she cried just a few tears. Just enough tears fell for him to know that she appreciated him sharing his story, and that she would see him for who he truly was from then on. Wiping the remains from her eyes and face Roxie sniffed, "We're both a little less than ourselves then. And I can see that you need me just as much as I need you. How about a deal? You protect me from Megatron or anything else that could maim, torture, dismember, or kill me and I'll do my best to be a friend that will never turn their back on you no matter what idiotic thing you do." The tears gone she gave him her brightest smile.

Jolt thought about this offer for a second, and then much to Roxie's horror he shook his head," Nope, you're not really friend material for me."

"But- "

Jolt raised a hand, "If anything you're just going to be an annoying little sister." Roxie blinked in awe at the genuine smile that Jolt gave her. _'He must have smiled like this all the time before the war. I want to see that smile more often.'_

Her own smile back on her face she giggled, "Oh yes, you need a little sister. I gladly accept that position. You're going to have to share me with Annabelle though."

"No argument there, just keep your femme nonsense away from me…Looks like my time is up. Your friends went running to Ratchet when they couldn't get the doors open. You need more rest anyways." Jolt got to his feet a bit stiffly, his own gears were in need of more rest as well.

Roxie waited until he was just at the doors, "Hey Jolt?" He stopped and looked back at her. "You should hear the original version of my mom's lullaby. It sounds a lot better than what you got from me."

Jolt gave her a half smile, "I sincerely doubt that."

He left the room ignoring the curious looks Alice and Beth gave him as they walked past.

Once the doors closed Alice asked, "What was that all about? Was it a love confession?"

"EW! No way! Not in a million years, I do not swing like that." Roxie found her denial funny. They believed her to be claiming to not take an interest in other species. In reality she was denying romantic affection towards her big brother bot. _'Besides, I have another knight in shining armor to flirt with.' _She cast a small glance and smile towards Tools that unfortunately did not go unnoticed. That night was spent pretending to sleep when Ratchet came to check on them, then gossiping about boys when he left.

Her back was forever burnt with Megatron's claim upon her, her leg was in a cast, and there was a horrible ring of a bruise around her neck (Ratchet had managed to cut through the metal and successfully remove the collar and ear buds without ruining her ear drums.) Even with all this damage Roxie was happier than she'd been in years.

* * *

**J: SOOO! As I've mentioned before following this story there will be a generous of one shots! What I want to know is would you guys enjoy the one shots each on their one with their own little summary OR put them together under one title? I will start a poll to let you guys decide, either option works for me :3  
**


	36. Epilogue

**(THIS IS THE EDITED VERSION)  
**

**J: **"Sniff" I must now declare this fanfiction complete HUZZAH and AWWWW! I'm honestly happy with how well this fanfiction turned out, at times I thought I wasn't going to keep going. But with 367 reviews, 88 favs, and 94 alerts I just had to keep going :) I hope you all enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

**Final THANKS TO:**

**Mieschers: **You are absolutely correct on your last statement xD Thank you!

**Jinxed just in time: **"Looks shifty" Yeeeeaaa, you got a point there. I try to keep characters in their personality but I slip up every once in a while ahha. Thank you!

**Keacdragon: **You're vote has been taken into account and I'm glad you got such a reaction to that last chapter, means I did a good job :) Thank you!

**Gelly619: **Hope this last chapter is considered awesome as well! Thank you!

**LynxbyLynx: **Lol, you're the one that made him so ill xD Thank you!

**Lightwolfheart: **Of course Alice and Beth are going to be in the sequel! I would have to be insane not to! Besides, they're getting a one shot all for themselves. Thank you!

**Latina Shewolf: **Hope you've regained your health and that you're summer school is going well. As always your reviews were marvelous, too long to comment back about everything but in general I appreciate the detail you put into picking it apart. Your vote for an all together collection of one shots has been taken into account. Thank you!

**Dontgotaclue88: **Good to know I won't disappoint with either decision xD Thank you!

**Supergirlprime: **I was wondering where you vanished to, and you are correct in your assumptions, now you just have to wait and see. Thank you!

**Standout4Christ: **Hmm, you're right about the head trauma, but for the sake of it I'll just say that Tools managed to avoid letting his head touch the ground. Thank you!

**Wrath of an Aerow: **"Whistles" Hope you've gotten caught up, you have a bit of reading to do. Thank you!

**Ironaft30: **How come you never sign in to review anymore? Whatever you still review and that's what matters. Thank you!

**Mizukikage: **I'm sorry this update wasn't immediate, and I'm happy to hear you were a dedicated reader :) Thank you!

**Tailsdoll123: **Hehe, I try and make her have a smart mouth only for the sake of comedy lol. Thank you!

**Wicken25: **I kept it up right to the end!Thank you!

**J: And thank you to all you other readers that did not review but still added this to your favs or alerts.**

**Just a heads up, this chapter is not the edited version, I was impatient and decided to give you the raw untouched version lol. ENJOY THE LAST CHAPTER!**

**Disclaimer: Transformers is owned by Hasbro. Tools belongs to Ironaft30. Roxanne belongs to me.**

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**Epilogue**

-Five weeks later-

"This is not going to end well."

"Who came up with this idea again?"

"The crazy girl in the wheelchair did."

Alice, Beth, and Maggie stood out on the tarmac on the sidelines of the race track they'd just made. At the starting line sitting in her wheelchair wearing cut off black shorts and a purple tank top was Roxie. She'd borrowed a soldier's pair of aviator sunglasses to complete her look of racing jockey. The handles of her wheelchair had rope tied around them that were then tied to the back of Skids' rear bumper. There was no one else to race against since Tools was still bed ridden for his ribs and all the Cybertronians besides her driver would never let her have any fun. Tied to the chair with a buckle she'd found Roxie gave a thumbs up to Skids.

"You just remember that you are gonna take da blame if you gets hurt girl." Skids had been surprised when Roxie had approached him and Mudflap for her idea. He didn't understand why until Mudflap had been sent off to distract the triplets, Ironhide and Jolt. If the Hatchet ever found out about this, the three of them were going to be in so much slag. All the same he'd been bored and wasn't about to pass up the opportunity. He revved up his engine and took off at a decent speed.

Maggie covered her eyes as Roxie whooped in glee. Beth and Alice watched the wheelchair to make sure it wasn't about to tip or flip. Ratchet and Jolt would never trust them alone with Roxie if she got hurt with them to witness.

They'd barely gotten started when Skids got a message from Mudflap. _**'Uh bro, we gots a problem.'**_

'_**What problem?' **_Distracted by the info Skids gradually began to increase his speed.

'_**Da kind that put me in the brig and will put you in da med bay for evah!' **_Further explanation wasn't needed when squealing tires were accompanied a blue blur that came roaring in their direction.

"Oh frag! Sorry girl but you're on your own!" Petrified of what Jolt would do to him Skids shifted his bumper so the rope got cut on the edges. Driving off through the wall of empty boxes used for the race track Skids ran for his life.

Continuing to roll backwards Roxie yelled after Skids, "SPOIL SPORT! SEE IF I EVER ASK YOU TWO FOR FUN AGAIN!" The wheelchair collided none too nicely against what felt like a wall. Looking over her shoulder to see Jolt in his alt mode, Roxie honestly didn't blame Skids for ditching.

"Just what did you think you were doing Roxanne?" To say Jolt was upset would be an understatement.

Pushing the sunglasses up onto her head Roxie mumbled with her arms crossed, "I was doing something fun. Sitting around in med bay is really boring."

Switching to his bi-pedal mode; Jolt picked up Roxie wheelchair and all. Carefully he pulled the rope off of the chair and took the buckle from around her waist. Turning her so she had to look him in the optic he sighed, "The boredom I get. But doing something as stupid as this with a mech who has as little intellect as Skids is something I don't get."

"It's their lack of intellect that made me ask them. Unlike all the other Cybertronians they wouldn't stop me from having a little fun despite my injuries. My first choice was Sideswipe and Sunstreaker but they're too busy scheming and putting together pranks for Tools when he gets released from med bay in two days." Roxie frowned down at her healing leg still in its clunky cast with everyone's signature on it. Being condemned to days upon days of boredom and restricted movement went on her list of things to hate Megatron for.

Thanking Primus that she'd gone with the minor twins Jolt rolled his optics then turned his disapproving gaze on the three female humans that had started tip toeing away to hide. "And what excuse do you three have for not dissuading her from going through with this plan?"

Alice, Beth, and Maggie looked everywhere but at Jolt. Being a good friend Roxie explained for them, "They couldn't say no to a friend in a wheelchair…Or the promise to let them give me a complete makeover." Alice and Maggie giggled at that part of their agreement. Beth enjoyed it just because she wasn't the one being subjected to the makeover.

'_I will never understand femmes, human or Cybertronian.' _"Either way I'm holding you all responsible. And just for your ludicrous attempt at fun I'm restricting you to the med bay for the rest of today and tomorrow." Jolt was satisfied by the group groan and Roxie's overly dramatic frown.

Alice's frown did a U-turn to expand her smirk into a winning grin with a twitch of evil to her eyes, "On the bright side that means we won't have to hunt you down for your makeover tomorrow. Oh yea, we totally knew you would try and run for it missy. No such luck. Thanks Jolt." Jolt glanced down at Roxie to see her glowering at him with her lower lip out in an additional pout. The desire to tell Alice she was welcome was compelling, but a nagging feeling of disastrous pay back from Roxie held him back. Instead he walked off to the med bay with Roxie still in hand.

"Blast it Tools! How many times do I need to tell you to stay in bed?" The clatter of metal violently hitting a wall caused Jolt to pause and Roxie to grumble about men with serious impatience problems.

Walking into the med bay they found Ratchet sitting at his desk muttering angrily in Cybertronian. On the other side of the room Tools was struggling to get free of the band of metal that held him down, both ends of the metal were welded to the metal bed frame. Roxie lost the unannounced game of 'Don't laugh first.' Jolt put Roxie on the floor so she could roll over to Tools' bed, sniggering she poked him, "What were you doing that earned you the ultimate confinement?"

"I got out of bed…and tried to go to my work room. I really don't think wanting to get something to entertain me deserved this, Ratchet!" Tools struggled a little more against the metal, which only served to agitate his ribs. Roxie didn't miss the twist of pain that briefly flickered across his face. In turn Tools caught the guilt in her eyes before she looked away pretending not to be impressed. Seeing the guilt then and every other time she caught him in pain was getting to be increasingly frustrating. He could guess what her thoughts were when the guilt showed. _'He's hurt because of me.' 'Seven men and two women are dead because they had come to save me.' _He understood why she had those kinds of thoughts, but no one blamed her at all. Unintentionally he'd overheard a conversation she'd had with Will and Jolt in the middle of the night discussing this.

-/-

_Tools had stopped needing medicine to help him get to sleep but that left him to occasionally wake up from discomfort. That night he woke up and nearly voiced a curse to his aching ribs. Upon hearing other voices, he kept his mouth shut and his eyes closed. The voice he heard wasn't a surprise; Jolt had made it his duty to stay close to Roxie at night for psychological comfort when her nightmares began to escalate to her screaming out loud. "You're still blaming yourself for those casualties?" It was both a question and a statement._

"_It's kind of hard not to blame myself for it." Roxie's voice had a tremble to it, she had been crying or was close to crying. Tools cursed his horrible luck of getting injured, he wanted to be next to her trying to soothe her worries and help her get back to a peaceful sleep. With healing ribs and a broken arm he couldn't do anything._

_The next voice caught him off guard, "Roxie you're thinking about it the wrong way. In your head you keep thinking that they died because they were there just to save you right?" What was Will doing in the med bay so late at night? Since he couldn't ask for fear of stopping the conversation, Tools kept listening to them._

_Roxie must have nodded or given a gesture of confirmation. "Yes, they were there to help you, but that was only a side job. N.E.S.T soldiers are taught and trained solely to aid the Autobots in getting rid of the Decepticons. That scouting team had orders to check the bunker and give us a count for the number of Decepticons inside. They were also instructed to search for you. Those brave men and women died because of their decision to be a part of this team. It's no different than the people that join the regular army. Does this make sense?" Tools had to hand it to Will; he knew how to explain things in a way that made perfect sense._

_He heard Roxie sniffle, she must have been crying during Will's explanation. The urge to hold her close to comfort her ate at his patience and fed his frustration. "I get what you're saying but I'm still going to keep thinking about it the other way around. I'll keep your words in mind, I promise." Her voice was lighter, less tense._

"_That's all we ask for. We'll leave you alone to try and sleep. Good night Roxanne." Tools was sure that Will's expression must match his own, Jolt using a soft soothing voice was entirely new to hear._

_Tools felt Jolt look over at him, playing dead was always hard to do with Cybertronians. He must have pulled it off or Jolt really didn't care. The sensation of being watched faded as Tools heard Jolt's massive form move and leave the room accompanied by Will's footsteps._

_-/_

Roxie pushed the guilt away to meet Tools' eyes, the sheer amount of sympathy and want held her breath in her lungs for a moment too long. Her air circulating again she asked Ratchet, "If I keep him out of your circuits and in bed will you unweld him?"

"Coming from the young human woman that was just trying to accelerate her wheelchair by tying it to Skids I'm having a hard time trusting your promise." Jolt avoided contact with Roxie's glare and Ratchet looked over his shoulder with a raised optic ridge. He wasn't impressed but didn't make a fuss since he'd just used most of his anger on Tools and she'd been brought back to med bay unharmed.

Seeing no chance to argue or counter Roxie pouted, "Okay, don't trust me then. I'll just go lay in my bed and give you ALL the silent treatment until I'm allowed out of the med bay." To show she was going through with it Roxie mimed zipping her lips and locking them before throwing away the key. She rolled over to her bed, hoisted herself onto it, and effectively cocooned herself in her blankets. It was silent until Tools broke into laughter, it hurt for him to laugh as hard as he was but he couldn't stop and didn't want to stop.

True to her word Roxie didn't say anything to Jolt, Ratchet, or Tools for the entire day (much to Tools' depression.) When evening came around Roxie was in a light sleep after a rather adequate meal from the mess hall where she had to listen to all the torture she was going to endure the next day from Alice, Beth, Maggie and now Mikeala, Sarah, and Annabelle. Will had stopped by their table to announce that they were all coming back to the base to have a party for her, Tools and Jolt.

"Roxanne, you awake?" Jolt's voice roused her from her comfort.

Stretching with a yawn she found Jolt's holoform by her bed instead of his real form. Startled to see the new projection she forgot her vow of silence. "Something wrong? Do you need me to get Ratchet?"

"Why do you think that something is wrong just because I'm using my holoform? Never mind, just come with me." Jolt gently pulled Roxie out of her bed to put her in her wheelchair. Roxie went along with whatever Jolt had planned, ever since she'd woken up she'd catch Jolt sneaking away to work on something and only see him the next day muttering to himself.

Jolt didn't say anything making Roxie more anxious about whatever was going on. Jolt turned her a bit to the left to head towards a large set of doors she'd come to just accept as background. The Autobots were given their own little area that they could use for a lab and only a very few select humans such as Will, Epps, and Tools could get clearance to enter. The doors Jolt was pushing her towards were the doors protecting the lab. A civilian nobody like herself getting to go into the lab was the equivalent to a sucker punch to Galloway's position. According to Chromia, Galloway attempted to get clearance into their lab at least once a month. Tools had even rubbed it in Galloway's face once by making sure to wave with a smile before walking into the lab. Hearing all that and getting to go in now brought her great joy.

The doors closed behind them and Roxie smiled ear to ear, all the time spent around Chromia and Ironhide had enlightened her to the beauty of the weapons built into their armor. Covering each wall on little hooks were numerous cannons, sniper weapons, blades, and grenades. _'Galloway would faint at the sight of all this.' _Relishing in that thought Roxie focused on Jolt standing in front of her, Jolt's holoform had deactivated after rolling her towards his real body.

Jolt was just a tad concerned at the sparkle in Roxie's eyes as she'd scanned the walls and the weapons they displayed. When she turned back to him he inwardly laughed at the expectation and thrill shining from her face. _'It's like watching a sparkling jump around in their new frame when they've become a youngling.' _"Now that you're completely awake I'd like to give you something."

A show of the Autobot lab and a gift? She had to be dreaming. Jolt reached into a small compartment in his arm and pulled out a small metallic blue ball. As he lowered it closer towards her she saw that there was some kind of black material through the center. The little blue ball was placed in her lap for her to touch and look over. She touched the black material in the middle and was curious to find it was the same black stuff used on headphones. It dawned on her then to pull on the blue parts. Both halves came apart with ease revealing them to be near duplicates of her hearing mufflers. In awe she had to make certain, "Jolt are these…?"

"If you mean to ask if they are my audio dampeners, no they're not. I got a hold of your father's notes, and the blue prints of the additions he made to Megatron's audio dampeners. Using that and the technology designed to make hearing aides, I was able to create a device that almost perfectly replicates the functions of audio dampeners. I've also added a few extra features to your father's original design."

Roxie was entirely speechless and overwhelmed. "Th-thank you Jolt." Jolt wasn't a physically affectionate mech but just this once he activated his holoform so Roxie could hug him while she cried.

Forcing herself to stop was difficult, getting herself to talk without breaking down again was even harder, "Y-you said you added a few extra features? What kind?" The extra features Tools had made to her bike were for her defense, she imagined Jolt thought the same way.

Jolt waited until she put them on, pleased that they fit her, to explain, "There are three features. The first one is a built in comm. device. It will allow you to talk to me at any given time, and for anyone with your channel to be able to get in touch with you. Push the button on your right ear." _**'Can you hear me?' **_Roxie jumped and laughed hearing Jolt's voice in her ears but he didn't move his mouth.

"Okay, that is really cool." That feature alone was enough to make her love her new hearing mufflers all the more.

Jolt's lip plates tilted to the side to show his pride in his handiwork, "Push the center buttons on both sides at the same time." Her reaction to the simple comm. System was entertaining, how she would react to this next feature would likely be highly amusing.

Aware that Jolt hadn't told her exactly what the feature was Roxie kept her eyes on him as she trailed her fingers over the metal to locate the buttons. Finding them she pushed at the same time and nearly screamed at the sensation of her head being encased. She figured out what was going on when a blue tinted material slid over her face. Reaching up she flipped the visor up, "It turns into a helmet? Do you have any idea what Galloway would do to get this kind of tech?"

"Yes, but he still doesn't know you're here. And I honestly don't care. If Galloway ever tries anything, he'll find himself in the same position as Tools but on the ceiling. The material that makes your helmet is the thinnest metal from my armor." Roxie raised an eyebrow. The helmet folding out from her hearing mufflers was enough to get every last scientist to chase after her, the helmet being made of Cybertronian armor had the right to get the entirety of NASA on her ass too. Jolt justified this decision by saying, "The helmet you were using before is no where near suitable to protect your fragile skull. Even with it being as thick as it is." The thick skull quip was brushed off to try and tell what it looked like. Since her hearing mufflers were blue it was only natural that the helmet was blue. Her hands didn't find anything until they got to the top where there were three spikes that started at the top of the visor and gradually fanned out. Roxie looked up at Jolt's head and saw where the spikes design originated from. _'Guess it's his own kind of way of marking me to be connected to him. The design is pretty awesome so I'm not complaining.'_

"What kind of damage would be strong enough to break this beastly helmet?" With the visor still up Jolt saw her eyes travel to the wall of weapons.

Planting his hands on his hips Jolt growled, "Nothing that anyone on base would willingly try on you. Not even Skids and Mudflap would be that stupid, no matter what you told them."

"I don't know, they were really into the idea of helping me just a while ago and all I had to do was ask." Jolt glared at her with enough disapproval to make her laugh nervously, "Okay, okay! I'm not going to ask anyone to shoot me in the head. What's the third and final feature? Don't say built in laser cannons because that's just major over kill." Common sense lead Roxie to push the same buttons to retract the helmet. Feeling her hair, she was impressed to find that it wasn't even flattened.

"The last feature is one I borrowed from Starscream's invention. It's not the same one from the collar; I just modeled it after the one he made. It's a tracking component. It's dormant right now, but when we're off base I'll have it activated." Jolt didn't miss the slight twitch of Roxie's hand; the day after she woke up she'd gotten into the habit of touching her neck to lightly trace the bruise. The bruise was now gone, but he would still catch her touching the spot where it was.

A second of silence passed before Roxie gave Jolt a small nod, "You're right, I'd rather have you find me than go without some kind of connection to you. Again…thank you. My father would be impressed and envious with what you've done." Roxie smiled again and Jolt felt more at ease. With her new hearing mufflers she wouldn't need to avoid him or any of the other Cybertronians that considered her precious. They were waterproof and the energy was restored through solar energy. It had been decided that Roxie was safest only with the Autobots. Though she had yet to be asked, Jolt was sure Roxanne would not entirely object to the idea of her living with them on Diego Garcia from here on out. If necessary they would enlist her into N.E.S.T services to keep Galloway from putting up a fuss.

The issue of her warrant for arrest was dropped with the passing of Agents Stone and Steep. Besides the fact that her new family was mostly aliens from another planet Roxanne Rose Evans would be able to live in peace and safety.

-/-

Out in the cold darkness of space a mech of grand proportions due to his surveillance attachments turned his red optics and body to point towards the last stationary location of his leader. "Report, Laserbeak." When Starscream had sent a call for reinforcements Soundwave had acted according to his wishes. Not because he saw Starscream as someone as important, but because he was curious. As the Decepticon intelligence officer he had to know everything that was happening among his faction and among the enemy. He was aware that Megatron had gone to Earth to retrieve pieces needed for repair. There was more behind the excursion and the need for backup was proof enough to make Soundwave act.

As one of the soldiers flew past to crash to Earth Soundwave ejected one of his remaining two minicons to attach to the soldier. Right before impact is minicon detached and landed further away from the battle field. The minicon used its shape of large metallic vulture to infiltrate the base that Megatron had taken shelter in. Laserbeak took a position in a dark corner that overlooked the entirety of the room. He then recorded everything that happened until Starscream flew through the roof, leaving Laserbeak to wait for further instruction.

Laserbeak responded by sending the video he had recorded, he personally saw not much of anything interesting besides the audio he caught of the human soldiers being slaughtered by Demolisher like the organic beasts they truly are.

Soundwave received and processed the report in less than five milliseconds. What he watched seemed rather routine for the pattern they had been following since their arrival to Earth. One significant detail that stood out to Soundwave was paused and zoomed in on. There flattened on the armor of Megatron's shoulder was an organic female. Keeping the zoom in place Soundwave continued the visual report. As he watched his lord talk to the human he began to recognize the voice he addressed her with. It was a voice he himself conveyed with feelings rather than tone. The way Megatron spoke to the Earthling which Megatron acknowledged as Roxanne was the same way he spoke to his minicons. Though Soundwave could not actually feel emotions, he still gave his minicons priority above all others except Megatron. Since their arrival to the planet Earth, Soundwave had lost two of his minicons, Frenzy and Ravage. The destruction of the two minicons left two silent communication lines that he wished were still there.

Thinking of his missing minicons spawned a thought that expanded the more he watched the report. Preparations including research would need to be made; as well, Megatron would also need to be informed. This idea he had come up with was rather unorthodox, but it would fulfill his needs and that's all that mattered to Soundwave.

END.


End file.
